Hope in the Darkness: 125th hunger games
by MegynFan13
Summary: The 5th Quarter Quell is on and its sure to be the most exciting of them all! 24 go in. Only 2 come out.
1. Chapter 1

"In out, in out," I say in my head as I remind myself to breathe. The room begins to circle around me and I feel myself lose the little composure I had retained. I sink to the ground and placed my perfectly manicured hands on the plush hand-woven carpet.

Today was the day. In just a few moments I would make my way through the large wooden doors that loomed before me and unleash some unexpected hunger games horror on the districts of Panem. I don't know how I let myself get into this situation, I don't even want to be president, I was forced into it. After my father, the previous president, died unexpectedly a few days ago, the responsibility was passed down to me. Now normally, the regular hunger games wouldn't require such a high amount of involvement from me, but this isn't the regular hunger games, this is 5th quarter quell. A sharp unfriendly knock at the tall wooden doors alerted me to the fact that it was time. I take a deep breath, brush off my cream colored silk shirt and perfect khaki pants, and place a clammy hand on the platinum doorknob. I exhale one last time and fling the heavy doors open. The artificial smell of the capitol instantly overwhelms me and I am a taken aback. It was stronger than usual.

My thin plum stilettos made satisfying clicks as I crossed the immaculate balcony to my podium and microphone. I raise my ash blue eyes to meet those of the surgically altered capitol citizens. Excited faces grin back at me with expressions of anticipation. The air felt heavy with suspense as I lean into the shining microphone. "Welcome…welcome." The hauntingly familiar words send ripples of excitement through the crowd. "As you know, today we reveal the twist of the 125th hunger games!" The crowd went wild, seeming to move and shake like choppy water. I turned my attention from the enthusiastic citizens to a young boy carrying an ornate wooden box. A small flick of my wrist rewards me with a crisp yellow envelope carefully labeled 125. I gently removed the capitol seal and extract the perfect card. The crowd had calmed down and is eagerly eyeing the card in my hand. I took a ragged breath and quickly read the card. "To remind the citizens that there is always hope, even in the darkest of night, 1 boy and 1 girl tribute will be permitted to survive."

Wait, did I just read that right? I do a double take and quickly scan the card again. I had read it right! A sense of relief washed over me as I realized two children would survive instead of one. No horror, just hope. I spin slowly on my heels and turn back to the white marble building, feeling grateful. This would be the best hunger games ever!


	2. District 1 Reapings

**Hey guys sorry I took a while to update, I was really busy! (just kidding I'm just extremely lazy) Ihope you like this chapter, I tried really hard to make these characters right! If you like new chapters you should probably click the review button….Please? **

**Ruby Jenkins**

The plastic dummy's head makes a satisfying thud as it lands on the cool concrete floor. It wasn't my usual straight across cut, but it would suffice. I lower my raised arm and let the sword fall to the ground, I've had enough training for the day and am itching to get home to get ready for the reaping, my reaping. I've decided that I am going to volunteer this year, I figure it'll bring me all the fame I deserve and I've got to look absolutely perfect. I run a hand through my enchanting red hair and smooth out my tight black shirt as I make my way out of the training center. I can feel the eyes of everyone standing outside the focus on me as I cross the courtyard on my way home. I usually attract a few unsolicited wolf whistles but I guess everyone's a little too on edge today. I'm easily one of the most beautiful girls in the district, maybe even all of Panem, and I'm not afraid to show it. I pass a gaggle of schoolgirls whispering and giggling loudly. They start making their way towards me but a cold glare stops them in their tracks. I walk up my front steps and into my beautiful house, slamming the door behind me. My bold entrance attracts the attention of my older brothers who immediately enter the foyer to mock me.

"Watch it princess!" My older brother Marsh shouts at me from across the room.

"Someone's in a bad mood!" coos one of my other brothers Malachite. The corners of my mouth curl down in disdain as I snarl back a reply.

"I'll have you know I'm in a FANTASTIC mood, after all, I'm going to volunteer today." I say, pushing my way through them and up the stairs. "You're just jealous because I'm young enough and you're not." I proclaim. They all laugh in reply and make their way to our impressive kitchen as I enter my room and lock the door behind me. I take a quick shower and shimmy my way into my short red dress with black studs as decoration. It hugs my body just the way I want and I grin in satisfaction. I twirl a couple times in front of my mirror before I hear a soft knock at my door. I strut across my plush carpet and pull the elegant door open to reveal my beaming mother.

"Hey darling," she says, "Are you ready for your big day?" She rubs my shoulder and I can't help but to smile.

"I'm SO ready!" I declare, feeling the confidence build up inside me. She wraps me in a tight hug which I accept.

"You know I wish you wouldn't go, and that our family is worried for you, but I know how much it means to you."

"Thanks mom" I sigh. I know they're worried for me, especially because of the narrow escape my brother Thyst had in the area, but I know I'm ready. More than that, I know I'm ready to be the star winning the games will make me. My mom holds me at arm's length and tells me I look beautiful, but I already know. She squeezes my hand as we exit my room and into the dining room to meet my father who is also astounded by my jaw dropping beauty. We have just enough time for some pictures before the bells go off and we walk down to the head square. I can feel that all eyes are on me as I enter the reaping area with confidence in my stride, including my boyfriend Phoenix's. He crosses over to me and smiles as his head tilts down to kiss me. Our lips meet and I can almost taste the envy of every girl watching. What can I say? He's a real catch. He smiles at me before returning to his section. I feel a tap at my shoulder and spin around and see an excited Carot, who you could basically say is my biggest fan. I smile at him and tell him that I need to go back to my section, leaving him standing awkwardly in the middle of the area.

I glance back to see that my brothers are goofing around in the adult area and am reassured. I'm slightly startled as our wide eyed escort, Teala taps of the shining microphone. Teala is sporting an interesting ensemble of teal hair and a deep red silk gown. Whatever floats your boat I guess. I was intently as the screen the movie we see every year about the tradition of the hunger games. It feels different this time because I know in a few weeks, I'll be like the muscular man on the screen, a winner. There is still a quiet buzz amongst the excited crowd as Teala reaches her pale hand into the female bowl and pulls out a slip. "Cara French!"

**Glare Zenton**

I can feel my girlfriend Thysta's cool breath on my neck as we hug goodbye to go home to prepare for the reaping. Her beautiful blue eyes seem to dance in delight as she turns away and heads back to her house. I put my hands in my torn blue jeans as she walks away and let out a low whistle. I really am lucky to have such an amazing girlfriend, another motivation for me to return. Today I am volunteering for the reaping. Even though she's worried for me, Thysta was my inspiration to volunteer, I know I'll be bringing pride and honor to my family and girlfriend, I'll make everyone proud. I run my finger over a scar on my inner hip to remind myself how tough I am as I reenter my house. The house is almost silent as my single mother turns the pages of the magazine she is reading. I only have a mom, my dad left when he found out my mom was pregnant when they got married and wanted to keep the baby. She tells me all the time it was the best decision of her life.

I take care of my mom and almost learned to take the place of my nonexistent dad. I stride down one of the many long hallways of my house on my way to my room. I open the door and immediately notice the signature scent of my cologne. I enter my large closet and pull out a suitable outfit for the day, a button up shirt paired with light brown slacks. I pull off my t-shirt to reveal my muscular body as I button up the shirt. My training has pretty much kept me in tip top health. That combined with my good looks and kindness makes me pretty popular with the girls, but I only have eyes for Thysta. Thysta. I feel bad about leaving her, but I know that I can do this. The gentle sound of the bells alerts me that it's time to leave. "Hey mom, its ti-,"

"I know!" She replies, already waiting at the front door. "I just want you to know how proud I am of you!" she says with a smile which I return. I lock the door behind us as we head towards the town square. I immediately look for Thysta, trying to ignore my dedicated "fans." We spot each other and the same time and she comes sprinting towards me and literally jumps into my arms. I reach up and brush her auburn hair out of her eyes.

"Glare I just wanted you to know that I totally support you volunteering and I just want you to know I love you so so so much!" She finishes her rushed sentence and I pull her tighter to let her know how glad I am to have her support. She jumps down and rushes off to the 16 girls section as I make my way to the boy's one. I gently push my way through the crowd to find my best friend Markus. Unlike me, Markus feeds off all the attention we get and loves every second of it. Once we located each other, we settle in, ready for the "show".

Our escort Teala and mayor Westwick present us with the same story we always hear and Teala moves on to read the girl's names.

"Cara French!" I hear her call out the girl's name. Before I can even catch a glimpse of Cara a girl a vaguely recognize emerges from the 17's section shouting that she volunteers. The crowd applauds as she climbs up to the stage and introduces herself as Ruby Jenkins. She looks ecstatic as Teala goes over to pick a boy. "Timothy Greening!" She reads. This time I fully recognize the name of the kid called. Tim is a guy in my math class. He doesn't even get into the aisle before I volunteer and follow the same route as Ruby.

**Ruby Jenkins **

The burly guy who just volunteered introduces himself as Glare. He's large and muscular but I happen to know he's a softy. I shake his hand firmly as the crowd cheers for us. He's attractive but has a sort of dopey grin on his face. Easy pickings I think to myself. Easy pickings.


	3. District 2 Reapings

_**Hi there! Haha does anyone even read these? I hope you like this chapter please please please please please leave me a review, even if you didn't like this one, tell me what to do better! PLEASEEEEE!**_

**Zaylie Wells**

"You NEVER do ANYTHING."

"YEAH WELL YOU'RE PRETTY USELESS YOURSELF!"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU, AFTER ALL THE THINGS I DO FOR YOU AND THIS FAMILY!"

"I HATE YOU!"

"BACK AT YOU!"

Huh. I guess it was going to be one of those days. My parents are at it again, they can't stop fighting for a minute. I tune their argument out as I sit in the refuge of my room. This has always been happening, ever since I was little, I've just learned how to ignore them, and everyone else for that matter who gets in a fight. I'm so used to it, I know my parents love my brothers and I but they don't love each other anymore. I pick at the abundance of split ends in my brown curly hair, my mind focused on the day ahead of me. I don't particularly plan on volunteering, but I know even if I do get picked, someone will be on that stage before I've even had a chance to open my mouth. Suddenly, there is a loud creak outside my door. I turn just in time to see one of my older brothers Zayne enter my room. He pats me on the back and sits down quietly next to me, trying to meet my unfocused eyes.

"How're you holding up?" He asks in a sincere tone. I glance up at him quickly, still lost in my thoughts.

"Fine." I say, furrowing my eyebrows. I'm perfectly fine; everyone needs to stop underestimating me. Zayne looks a bit taken aback but quickly regains his cool demeanor.

"I'll leave you to get ready." He says quietly, rising to leave my room. I look up with my vacant eyes to watch him leave. As soon as I hear the door click shut I head to my bathroom to examine myself in the mirror. I see a short skinny girl with curly brown hair in the mirror, the same me I see every day. I look very similar to everyone else in my family. Zayne, Paxton, Chet, Onyx, Ryder and I all have the same wavy brown hair and green eyes. Something that sets me apart is the tiny flecks of brown in mine. I guess you could say it makes me unique. Or weird, same thing really. I put my muscular arms at my sides and look at my carefully chosen outfit. I'm wearing a soft green dress with white shoes. My hair has also been done into 2 French braids; I look elegant, pretty almost. I hear the bells go off, barely masking my parent's fight. I exit my room and hop down our grand staircase. I tip toe quietly past the kitchen where my parents are staging world war three, attempting to go unnoticed. Unfortunately my mother spots me instantly and lets out a squeal of what I perceive to be joy.

"Zaylie, You look GORGEOUS!" she gushes. I mumble a thank you and quickly slip through her outstretched arms. I don't want to engage with my parents at the current moment. I manage to escape the house without further detection and walk to the town square. I get there and stand in my area waiting for my friends. In a couple minutes they appear. Trinetty, Beau, and Thayer wave hello before Beau and Thayer head to the 16's boy's area.

"I don't understand why you don't ask him out." Says Trinetty. I'm a little surprised but then again that's all my friends ever talk about, how Thayer and I like each other. I guess it's pretty obvious but whatever; we don't want to ruin our friendship. I smile sheepishly and Trinetty and focus my attention on our male escort, Dixon. This year his naturally black hair is dyed a forest green and he is wearing a midnight blue suit. I listen carefully as he and the mayor read us the speech they always do. Afterwards Dixon heads over to the females bowl and pulls out a slip of paper which he unfolds.

"Mira Ore!" He calls out in excitement. I'm slightly relieved until I see who Mira is. She is a tiny little girl who must be twelve years old. I can visibly see her shaking. At first I'm shocked that no one has volunteered, but then I realize no one is going to. I can do this, I think to myself as I step through the crowd and volunteer as tribute.

**Zeke Current **

"OUCH!" My trainer's scream rang across the now silent gym. I raised a large hand to my forehead to wipe away my sweat. When it came back down I discovered I was covered in my trainer's blood. I guess I've gotten better I think with a smirk. I turn away and walk back to my bag to leave the gym as doctors rush over to treat the gash I've just left above my trainer's eyebrow, whoops. Part of me deep down is horrified at the pain that must be causing him, but like I said, deep down. I sling my duffel bag over my shoulder and push through the group of staring kids, eager to return home. I step outside and am not even phased by the intense wind. Instead I powerwalk across the well-kept lawn to my house. I pull the door open with a force that almost rips it off its hinges. The house is silent as I let out a loud grunt; my parents are probably off studying. Both are intelligent, killing machines. My mother studies fighting and my dad studies manipulation. Yeah, it's pretty intense.

I throw my pack on the sofa in my bedroom and toss on the simple suit I picked earlier to wear for the day. I run a comb through my messy black hair and spike it the way I usually wear it. Satisfied, I'm about to head down to the town square when something stops me dead in my tracks. Its, just a picture I think to myself, gazing at a photograph of the love of my life, Sapphire. Her perfect blonde hair and blue eyes are trapped in that photo, and I almost begin to weep on the spot. She was the only person I ever loved and my parents killed her. That's a big part of why I'm volunteering today, I don't want to be owned anymore, I want to be free. Suddenly overcome with anger, I storm out of my house to the town square. I'll spare you the details of the stupid escort Dixon and our mayor; I'll skip to the interesting part. Anyways, so they read off the female name and its some 12 year old. She makes it to the steps before someone volunteers, which is almost unheard of in district 2. A girl named Zaylie introduces herself and Dixon heads to the boy's bowl next.

"Adam ti-"

"I VOLUNTEER!" I shout before Dixon even finishes the sentence. I rush up the steps before anyone can challenge me and I introduce myself to the crowd. I make sure to make direct eye contact with my parents to make sure they know that they caused this. I have one last thought as I look upwards into the clouds before Zaylie and I are escorted into the justice building. ""This one's for you Sapphire."


	4. District 3 Reapings

**Hey there, thanks for reading! If you're reading this you should probably review and tell me what you did and didn't like! PLEAAASSSSEEEE? **

**Trixxie Finnegan**

I wipe a dirty hand across my equally dirty face and let out an annoyed sigh. I'm always a mess, what I wouldn't give to not be covered in soot for just once. I sweep my dirty blonde hair into a loose ponytail and rest my cheek on the warm floor. Well today's the day I think to myself. Another year, another chance to be killed, but whatever, I'm not afraid of the stupid capitol and their ridiculous fashion choices. Trixxie, Trixxie….TRIXXIE. I can hear my name being shouted loudly from up here in my hideout in the attic so I decide to check it out. This better be important. I quickly scurry down the decaying wooden stairs not bothering to look where I'm going. Bad idea. I slam right into Jules, one of my worker friends, sending us both toppling to the ground. "Hey there you ar- OOOFFF!" He exclaims as our bodies collide. Suddenly embarrassed, I pop back up and brush the dirt from my too big jumpsuit the workers provide me with for clothing. "Watch it shrimp!" He fake yells at me with his signature grin on his face.

"You watch it….bigfoot!" I snap back, annoyed that he brought my size into this. He reaches out to punch my arm but I'm too quick, before he's even balled his hand into a fist I've ducked under him and hit his other arm. He lets out a low chuckle and pushes hands deep into the pockets of his grimy jumpsuit.

"So… you ready?" He asks me, obviously referring to the reapings that would occur in an hour or two. I shrug quickly and reply in a sassy voice.

"As I'll ever be." His eyes dart to the ground and I know that it makes him uncomfortable that I have to do this but honestly, I have hardly any chance of being picked anyways. I hear some heavier footsteps on the stairs leading from the factory to the dining room where Jules and I are standing. I can tell by their voices before I even see them that it's Carrisa, Lenny, Jenn, and David. They're all laughing at some terrible joke Lenny's probably just told. They all saunter into view; each one is caked in grime and oil from the production line in the factory below us. They all stop short when they see me which irritates me. We're going to my reaping, not my funeral, they need to stop acting like it. I smile to let them know everything's all good and join in the conversation. Sometimes it was hard to be around adult friends all the time, but it's not like I have another option. My parents got a divorce when I was a kid and my father got custody. It's a wonder how because I'm not sure he'd ever looked me directly in the eyes. Anyways, one day I just got fed up with him and ran away from home. I didn't really have anywhere to go since my mom didn't bother to keep in touch with me after the divorce, so I came here. I should probably clarify that "here" is a television factory where I met my worker friends. They took me in and gave my clothes, food, and a place to sleep. It's not much, but it's more of a home than I've ever had. I may not have real parents around but they're as close as it gets. They treat me like their own, telling me everything I've ever wanted to know, taking me to the reapings, and talking to me when no one else will.

The room quiets as we hear the bell that signals the start of the reaping. Better hurry. We leave the room in a single file to head to the town square. We have to board a train to get to the town square because the factory is at the edge of the district, but it won't take more than 10 minutes. I watch solemnly as the countryside flies by the old windows. The train full of parents and children is silent as we pull into the station and walk to the square. In a sad sort of way, it's almost a treat to come to the reaping because I don't leave the factory except for today. Almost.

**Carson Smith**

The second I open my brown eyes I can feel something is wrong today. I pull my comforter up to my ears and try to go back to sleep but it's no use now though because I can't shake the feeling in the pit of my stomach telling me something is about to go very **very** wrong. I force myself to get out of bed and get dressed just in time to realize my mom has been cooking biscuits. I tear down the stairs just making it to get 2 biscuits before the rest of my brothers snatch them up. I have 2 little brothers and an older one, so I'm sort of in the middle. I look around the table at my mom, dad, and brothers, everyone looks so happy that I almost forget what today is. My heart sinks as I remember how many times my name is in the drawing. An even 25. But on the bright side, I have less than most boys my age who have up to 95. My younger brothers Jeremy and Dan are too young at only 11 and my older brother Kevin is 20, so I'm the only one with my neck on the line. I'm reassured by the fact that I know they will be there to support me, but at the same time, I'm completely alone. I hear a knock at our door and assume it must be my friend Connor. I open the door and what a surprise! A grinning Connor greets me with a sparkle in his eye. I shout a quick goodbye to my parents, and set off with Connor for the town square. We live pretty much right in the middle of the city so we have some time to kill. Connor suggests that we go to a coffee shop and I suddenly realize that 2 biscuits definitely weren't enough and agree.

"How many times is your name in again?" I ask him, worried for the answer.

"Sixteen," He replies nervously, "Do you think I'll be picked?" My mouth drops open in shock.

"Bro, you've only got 16, most kids our age have at least 20…including me." Connor looks surprised and turns to me as the barista hands us our drinks and rolls.

"I thought you only had 10." He says, sounding shocked.

"Yeah well…I dunno, Kevin thought it would be a good idea." I say, trying to get him to drop the conversation, talking about it only made me more nervous. Connor gave me a look before sitting down at one of the rusty metal tables. "How is Mia handling her first year?" I ask, referring to Connor's younger sister who just turned 12.

"She's alright, nervous, but alright." I completely understand, I remember how my first time felt. I can see that the peacekeepers are ready and starting to check people in so we head over so we don't have to wait in a long line. We get our blood sampled and then head over to the 16's section. People file in slowly before they finally start the ceremony. A woman with long pink hair introduces herself as our new escort, Piffle. I stifle a laugh as she tells us her name. Connor and I exchange a knowing look. The crazy names the capitol citizens have. Our mayor presents us with the story we hear every year and Piffle says some more things about how excited she is to be here before heading over to the female's name bowl. Piffle digs her hand around for a minute before pulling out a piece of paper. She peels it open and the crowd holds their breath.

**Trixxie Finnegan **

"Trixxie Finnegan." My name echoes across the silent crowd as I silently FREAK OUT. That's my name, that can't be right! I want to scream. But of course I don't say anything. Instead I regain my composure and walk slowly up to the stage. An excited Piffle takes my hand congratulates me, and moves on the male bowl. I'm still slightly dazed as I look out into the crowd to see that Jules and my other friends are silently weeping. I can't bear to look, so I turn my attention to the reading of the boy name, which I don't recognize.

**Carson Smith **

I freeze mid-laugh and turn to face the stage. I turn to face Connor one last time only to find that he's backed away along with everyone else around me. My heart is racing as I walk up to the stage. I can feel the tears well up in my eyes I look into the crowd, and no one will meet my eyes. My eyes sting as I shake the girl's hand. She's tiny, an easy kill I think to myself. Carson stop I think. Under 5 minutes and the capitol has already turned me into a monster.


	5. District 4 Reapings

**Hey guys! Sorry the boy was a little rushed, but I'm getting tired! I'm going to try to go back tomorrow and add more! I hope you liked this one! Leave a review pretty please please please please !**

**Hailey Gracefield **

"**BOOM."** The flaming wall made a deafening noise as it came crashing to the ground. I could literally feel myself start to suffocate as toxic smoke filled my lungs. I started to feel panic rising inside my chest as I darted through the flaming building desperately trying to find my way out. Every time I came to what I thought might be an exit, it ended up being a dead end. I was starting to get dizzy from all the adrenaline pumping through my body and had to stop running. "HELP," I scream, desperate someone would hear me, "SOMEONE HELP ME! I'M TRAPPED! CAN ANYONE HEAR ME! HELP!" I sink against the wall I was leaning against and feel the tears start to spill over. "Help." I choke out. "Help me…" I start to lose consciousness from the smoke when a searing pain above my right knee brings me back. I watch in horror as my skin blackens and peels away, exposing my muscle. I turn and claw at the wall, desperate to escape but it's no use. I hear a loud snap to my left and look up just in time to see the wall of fire descend upon me.

"AAHHHH!" I sit straight up in my bed screaming, covered in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. Its ok Hailey, you just had another nightmare I tell myself. I wipe my hand across my forehead as my little sister Aria comes trotting into my large bedroom.

"Are you ok sissy?" She asks in a sincere tone. Embarrassed, I snap back at her.

"I'm fine, leave me alone." Aria looks surprised but exits my room as quickly as she'd come. I really hate it when people pity me; it's something that just REALLY gets on my nerves, I don't need other people feeling bad for me. I've been having a lot of nightmares about fires lately, but I know why. Around this time when I was 7 my dad died in a fire on a boat. Ever since then, I have nightmares like this around the time he died. Still slightly unnerved I fling the covers off myself and cross my room to my closet. I've already picked out my outfit for the day; it's a simple blue blouse with a white skirt and black shoes. I put it on quickly and set to work on my light brown wavy hair. I start at the top of my head and French braid my hair into two braids on either side of my head. I wear my hair like this a lot because it keeps it out of my way. I don't bother with makeup or any other girly things; I can't stand that kind of stuff. Before heading downstairs I catch one last glimpse of myself in the mirror. I look…um I don't know…like me? I have olive skin, a tiny nose and wide eyes, I don't know how else how to describe myself. I hop quietly down the polished stairs and into our kitchen.

My mom and sister are already in there. I can see my mom trying to convince Aria to eat some fruit but she's demanding ice cream. I think my mom tries really hard to make up for how she used to be. Between the time when my dad died and my sister was born (7 months to be exact) she sort of hung me out to dry. She slipped into a deep depression leaving me to leave my childhood behind way before I was ready. After my sister was born everything went back to normal but those 7 months were the hardest of all my life. My mom smiles brightly and tells me I look beautiful. I smile back and sit down to have some of the pancakes my mom has prepared.

"We'll need to leave in about 10 minutes," she says, "is Harry coming with us?" she asks. Huh, I don't actually don't know. Harry is one of my bestfriends, so I'd assume so. A knock at the door proves me right. I get up and invite a tired Harry and his sister Amelia in for breakfast. His rumpled black hair and sleepy blue eyes make him seem totally out of it. I giggle as I offer him a pancake.

"Tired much?" I ask playfully. In reply he just rolls his eyes, but I can see him trying to hide a smile. He and Amelia manage to shovel down 6 pancakes before we have to leave. I hate to brag but my mom does make the best ones in town. We pretty much live in the heart of district 4 so we don't have to walk really at all. 5 minutes and we're there. Harry leaves Amelia with me, who I take to the 12 year olds section. I'm thankful that Aria isn't old enough yet to be put in, I worry enough for tiny Amelia. I make my way to the 15's section to meet my 2 best friends, Carly and Victoria. They're pretty much my only close friends, they really seem to get me and banter with me in "sarcasm". We joke that it's our second language. Carly squeals when she sees me and hugs me right away. I awkwardly pat her on the back pretending not to know her, just one of many of our inside jokes. She pulls away to face me right as the ceremony begins. Our escort Carmello is sporting a fancy white suit and a blue comb over. Attractive. He tells us the same story we hear every year so I won't bore you with the details. He bobbles around aimlessly for a moment, confused about where the big glass bowl that holds the girl's names is. After locating it a reaches in and pulls out a slip of paper which he quickly unfolds and leans into the microphone in front of him. "Amelia Weih" My legs turn to gelatin as it registers that he's just called the name of my best friend's little sister.

**Kaelp Nuran **

Staring at the sunset I wondered if the sun was as bright everywhere else in Panem as it was here is district 4. I dig my feet into the grainy sand and lose myself in thought. I come down here to the shore a lot, I prefer being by myself to being with other people. This is one of the reasons I only have one friend, Runeal, who just so happens to be the mayor's kid, so I only see him at school. Yeah I know, I have a pretty exciting life.

I go for runs a lot, just to clear my mind from all the thoughts I've piled up. I checked my watch and saw that it was 7; I'd been up since 3. I wake up that early because I'm training to be a fisherman and now I have my own boat. Sometimes I go diving for clams and pearls too, but only when I have free time. I sigh inwardly as I hear the bell ring for the reaping. I let myself enjoy one last breath of fresh air before forcing myself up to head home. My house is beachfront so I don't have to walk far to arrive. Our house (which could be more correctly called a shack) is tiny and dirty from being struck by waves and winds. The door practically falls off the rusted hinge as I enter and enter my tiny bedroom. My parents won't be home yet because they will be at work right up until the reaping, especially my mother because she assists the director. I strip off my dirtied shorts and t-shirt for a more appropriate blue shirt and khaki pants. I comb my dark brown hair so it's neat and slide a silver ring given to me from my sister onto one of my slim fingers. I tuck in my shirt and exit my house quickly so I'll be on time and head tot eh town square. I get the usual finger prick, head to the 14's section and get ready for whatever might happen next.

My sister Shoare's first reaping is today and I have to admit I'm nervous for her. I come from a poor family so we have to take the tesserae but I make sure it's only me. Shoare's name is only in the drawing today once, thank goodness. I try to do everything for my family so they can have it as easy as possible. As per usual they take forever with the introduction before finally getting to the girl's names. They call a girl named Amelia something, I recognize that name. She's the little sister of a guy I go to school with. What a shame, she can't be older than 13.

**Hailey Gracefield **

I'm literally shaking, how could this happen? I don't know what to do! My head is spinning and I'm terrified, and then it hits me. I push my way through the tightly packed crowd and into the aisle. "HEY!" I shout, making sure I'm heard. "I VOLUNTEER!" I sprint towards Amelia who at this point has completely broken down. I try to calm her before Harry carries her off, a look of terror in his eyes. The crowd seems a lot bigger standing up on the stage. I left my eyes glaze over as I wait for the male name to be read.

**Kaelp Nuran **

Everyone's staring at me. Huh? What happened? The man with the blue hair on the stage reads the name again. It takes me a minute to realize that it's mine. I feel shocked for a second before the confidence takes over. I climb the stairs with pride and try to seem brave. The girl tribute's eyes water as I shake her had. I glance around one last time before I enter the justice building. I'm not worried though; I know I'll be back soon.


	6. District 5 Reapings

_**Whitley Hedge**_

Ugh. I crinkled my nose at the horrid stench the power plant outside my bedroom was currently producing. You'd think that a district full of power plant workers would be able to figure out how to create power without the smell, but no. I turned my attention from the pungent power plants back to my Pre-calc homework, but it seemed like nothing could distract me from what I was really thinking about today. Luc. Last year my older brother was reaped and sent to the hunger games, where he was killed in the initial bloodbath. The memory of his horrific death and how he was seemingly forgotten brought hot tears of anger to my striking green eyes. The thought of his messy hair and calm smile made my heart ache so badly, I think about him all the time. He was always there for me even when my older brother Brock and sister Amata wouldn't give me the time of day. He seemed to understand how hard it was for me to be teased and bullied at school by the girls and not be able to do anything about it, not that I had any interest in being friends with them anyways. I'm more into my studies than hanging out with bestfriends or boyfriends, and Luc got that. He helped me cope with the pressure my dad put on me to be fantastic at my school work and with the seemingly perfect Brock and Amata. "Whitley stop" I commanded myself, "he's gone and there's nothing you can do about it." I stand up from the window seat I was curled up into and stand in front of the dusty mirror that hangs in the corner of my bedroom. I find a sad looking olive skinned girl with expressive eyes staring back at me, oh wait, that's me. I grab a wooden hairbrush from my wardrobe and bring it through my long black wavy hair. Paired with my soft mint green colored dress which I have attached a butterfly pin to and my white mary jane's. I almost look nice. Too bad I'm the only who thinks it. "DINK." A loud noise echoes around my room as a small pebble hits my dirty window. I glance out and see my friends, Ryder, Clark, and Pippa. They are all grinning from ear to ear and are laughing as my expression of confusion changes to one of happiness. My heart catches in my throat as I sneak another peek at Ryder. His charming smile and blonde hair sends my heart racing at a million miles an hour. I've always had a crush on him, always. I see him look at me questioningly and I quickly pull away from the window and leap down the stairs. I sprint down the steps to my house and meet with my friends. Everyone greets me and we start the trek from my house to the town square. We talk about our crazy escort, Milia, what we've been up to, and how many times our names are in the drawing. Pippa, Clark, and I talk about how we only have our names in 3 times, but then Ryder drops a bombshell.

"50," he announces with a concerned tone, "the family's had a tough time lately, and we needed the tesserae." Everyone stops in shock and turns to look at him. My mouth is agape and I am completely shocked. The odds are definitely not in his favor. He shrugs it off like it's no big deal and continues walking as the rest of us trail behind like awkward little ducks following their mother. We finally arrive at the town square and have to sign in. We share an awkward hug as Pippa and I head for the girls' section and Clark and Ryder head for the boys'. Pippa and I talk for a few minutes before an obnoxiously dressed woman taps the microphone. The crowd goes silent as she titters on about the history of the games, how we are all SO lucky and what an honor this all is. Huh, some honor. No one speaks as she digs her perfect hand through the names and pulls out a single slip of paper. One name, one child.

"And your district 5 female tribute is…"

_**Orion Northcliff **_

I wipe a bead of sweat from my forehead as I stand calmly looking over the hill I was standing atop. I checked my watch and found that I had run the 3 miles in in 35 minutes. Sure, it wasn't the fastest time in the world, but I was getting faster. I could hear slow thuds as my girlfriend Merope approached me panting like a dog. She came to a stop, bent over and placed her hands on her knees. I could see she was shaking with exhaustion so I walked over and placed my large hand on her shoulder. "You alright?" I questioned her. She glanced up at me and I could see that she was starting to turn red. She then stood up and leaned into my large frame, still huffing.

"Oh yeah, piece of cake!" she exclaimed. I smiled and pulled her onto my back and she wrapped her long legs around my thick torso. "I don't get how you do that every day!" she wheezed, still attempting to catch her breath.

"What can I say, the more you do it the better you get." This is how I look at a lot of things in my life. I was the youngest in my family (don't you dare call me the baby) and I feel like I'm constantly having to prove I can keep up with the others. It also doesn't help that my fathers the mayor because no one ever wants to be my friend just because. I mainly keep to myself and train all day long. But on days like today when I need to clear my mind, I go running. I thought I'd bring Merope along but she isn't the most athletic girl. Speaking of her I feel her tug at my abnormally large ears and kiss the top of my head. I roll my eyes and start down the hill with her still on my back. We'll need to hurry if we want to make it in time for the reaping. I drop Merope at her house and head back to mine. I stop to wipe my feet before entering and quickly dart up the marble staircase. Once in my room I rinse myself down and put on my outfit. I'm wearing a white polo shirt, too big beige pants, my dad's running shoes, and a black leather belt. I look good I tell myself. I slink into our large kitchen and pour myself a bowl of oatmeal from the pot and sit down to eat. As I'm standing up, I knock my glass of water onto the floor, shattering the crystal glass. I stand frozen looking at the mess I've created as my dad burst into the kitchen.

"WHAT DID YOU DO!" he screams at me. I back away and look up to meet his eyes.

"I'm sorry," I say quietly, "I didn't mean to, it was an accident." Out of the corner of my eye I see my brothers and sisters peering over the banister eager to witness the fight. I glance up at Nalia, Sayin Bruno, Black, and my twin brother Otto quickly before my dad really gets angry.

"YOU ARE SO WORTHLESS, AND YOU NEVER DO ANYTHING USEFUL. YOU ARE THE BABY OF THIS FAMILY AND YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS FAR OUTSHINE YOU!" His round face is getting redder by the second and I can feel the anger boiling inside me start to bubble over.

"ARE YOU EVEN KIDDING?" I scream back, "I TRY SO HARD TO IMPRESS YOU, YOU'RE JUST IMPOSSIBLE." I turn in a moment of rage and throw a wooden spoon at him. He catches it without even blinking and continues screaming at me.

"YOU NEVER DO ANYTHING BUT SLOUCH AROUND AND COMPLAIN. YOU HAVE NEVER ONCE DONE ANYTHING IMPORTANT. IF YOU WANTED TO BE IMPORTANT, YOU'D BE BRAVE AND VOLUNTEER AND FINALLY MAKE YOURSELF LOOK GOOD."

"FINE," I scream as I storm off "IF THAT'S WHAT YOU THINK OF ME, THEN FINE." I don't bother to close the door as I race down the street to the town square. The rage inside of me is causing me physical pain as I sprint towards where I'm supposed to meet Merope. The grin that she greets me with almost instantly turns to a frown as she sees the look on my face.

"What happe-"

"I don't want to talk about it." I shout angrily. Merope looks surprised but takes my hand anyways as we walk towards the peacekeepers to check in. We exchange a rushed hug as I head towards the 17 year olds section. I only get angrier as that stupid escort Milia chatters about what an honor the hunger games is and just how lucky we are to have the opportunity. The crowd goes quiet as she walks towards the large round bowl that holds the girls names and pulls out a perfectly cut strip. She leans into the microphone and reads out the name of a girl I don't know. Some chick named Whitley Hedge.

**Whitley Hedge**

I feel my already rosy cheeks deepen in color as I feel everyone's eyes turn towards me. This must be a mistake! My brother just died, I can't have been selected! I can't stop my thoughts from drifting to my brother. Will I meet the same fate? I can't help but think that even if I do die, I won't be missed. I take small forced steps until I reach the stairs that will take me to the stage. I climb them quickly and look out into the crowd of people. I turn to the escort Milia who is dressed in a quite interesting orange dress and ocean blue hair. She offers me no comfort as she moves on to draw the boys name.

"And district 5's male tribute is…"

**Orion Northcliff **

"Glen Freebell" The tension in the crowd relaxes as they realize they will be safe for one more year, but something nags me in the pit of my stomach. It's my father's words from earlier. "If I were important," I say to myself, "I'd volunteer." In a crazy moment of desperation and fear I step into the aisle and say those 4 life changing words. "I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE." Everyone's heads whip around as I make my way to the stage. The Glen kid embraces me and quickly runs off to his parents. I mount the stage and size up the Whitley girl. She isn't the prettiest but she also isn't hideous, but I can tell by her eyes that she is terrified. I look out into the crowd and make eye contact with my father. The color has drained from his face and I can see him shaking from here. Good I think, feeling satisfied." Am I important now?" I think to myself.

**Whitley Hedge **

Oh my god. This Orion guy is huge, not to mention I've never seen him before in my life. His hands are rough and large and when they meet mine, a shiver runs down my spine. He's probably thinking of ways to kill me now. The silence is interrupted by a cheerful Milia, "Let the games begin."


	7. District 6 Reapings

**HI **_**there! Thanks for being patient with me for not updating for a day or two. We're getting so close to the games I'm so excited! I hope you guys like this chapter and **__**Please REVIEW! **__**I absolutely love reviews and it makes me want to write more (even if it's a critique or something negative) So if you're reading this, you should leave a review! Does anyone even read these…?**_

**Laurel Eldin**

"Meowwww." The quiet cry of the feral cat that I named Celeste startles me. I look upwards only to see her sitting atop a window sill high above the cobblestone street. Celeste is tilting her small head to the right and her mysterious green eyes seem to sparkle. I smile brightly up at her and she promptly leaps down and trails closely behind me. I shift the bread loaves I'm carrying to my left hip as I reach for the brass doorknob to my family's small home. Celeste continues on at my heels as I set the fresh loaves on our makeshift kitchen counter. I turn around and lean with my back to the counter, taking everything in. Our kitchen is a more correctly a room with a stove, yellowing fridge, and some grey wooden counters that are beginning to splinter. I slip my ratty ballet flats off and tip toe through my house in an attempt to not awaken my siblings. To my surprise, Ashe and Ebony are already awake and appear to be having a height contest. The sight of their happiness makes my heart swell before it breaks because just for a moment, I allow myself to forget what today is.

Both of them look pleased when they catch sight of me and run up to hug me before wiggling out of my embrace to inspect the bread I brought home. I continue down the narrow hallway to my tiny bedroom. I really have to push on the warped door to make the hinges swing open, which also happens to make the most atrocious noise on the planet. I can feel myself tingling with excitement because even under the circumstances, I'm happy to have an opportunity to dress up. I'm usually more tomboyish and am more into sports than sparkles, but this is an exception. I pull a soft green dress from the pile of clean laundry I keep folded in the corner of my room and hold it up to my body. I've always loved this dress. I pull off the faded blue blouse I was wearing and slide on the soft dress. I button up the top until the second to last button and look at myself in the mirror. Not quite satisfied, I tie my medium length dark hair into a high ponytail and tie a lavender ribbon around the hair tie. I run my hands over the dress one more time in an attempt to smooth the wrinkles that have formed since last year.

I suddenly flinch as I remember that this year, Ebony will be coming with me to the reaping for the first time. I worry a lot about my brother and sister and I really don't appreciate the added stressor. On top of the Ebony dilemma, I also have been taking tesserae, so I'm also worried about being picked. I shake my head as if clear the memory from my thoughts and return my focus to ebony. I can hear her and my mother's voices coming from the kitchen as I advance down the airy hallway. I gasp as I see ebony who is wearing a light blue dress and blouse, she looks enchanting. I sweep her up into my arms and tell her how beautiful she looks and leave a soft kiss on her forehead. Ebony doesn't look convinced as I hear my friends calling me from outside. I feel Ebony grasp the skirt of my dress as we meet up with my friends. I have 6 close friends, Holy, Blaid, Keely, Larch, Jaimes, and Grante. All of them are already assembled outside our small house. I wave hello as everyone crowds around Ebony to tell her how beautiful she looks. Ebony smiles meekly and grabs onto the clean lines of Larch's khaki pants. Glad for a distraction, I join in on the cheerful bashing of our silly escort.

"And on top of it all, her accent is WAY over the top, way worse than anyone I've ever heard!" I exclaim, referring to our escort Tallya's over exaggerated captiol-esque accent. We share a chuckle before join the long line to have our fingers pricked. Ebony squeezes my hand as she has it done for the first time. We share a tight hug before I send her off the 12 year Old's section and I head to the 13's. I friends and I stand closely together, trying to ignore the thought that is looming above us all. Tallya finally makes an appearance on the stage and welcomes us. Yay. I am shaking in anticipation and fear as we watch the haunting video and hear from our mayor. Tallya takes no time in plunging her hand into the female bowl. The entire district holds its breath waiting to see who it will be. Tallya pulls a slip from deep in the bowl and unrolls it and reads the name.

**Piston Steel **

I hum a song to myself as I lift the heavy piece of scrap metal from the pile. I can feel cool sweat running down the side of my tan face. I toss the metal onto conveyor which…well come to think of it, I don't actually know where it goes. I put one of my hands on my waist and flick my shirt revealing a small tattoo of a sledge hammer on my stomach.

"HEY STEEL, GET TO WORK!" I hear my supervisor shout at me. I narrow my eyes and open my mouth and am about to fire back some witty reply when I'm quite literally saved by the bell that signals the end of my shift. I grin at the man and put two of my fingers up to my forehead in fake salute before speeding off. I grab my battered jacket off a rusty hook and push the heavy doors open and start power walking in attempt to return home quickly. I climb several flights of stairs before I finally arrive at my family's dingy apartment. I pull the creaky door open and am surprised to see my sister Gaia (everyone calls her Gizmo) standing on the worn out carpet of our living room. She seems unimpressed with my excuse that I was late because we were kept late but looks relieved to see me anyways. I rumple her hair before I walk to my bedroom. My brother Axel and Gizmo will be the only ones home right now since my parents will most likely be at work up until they read that first female name.

My bedroom is small and dirty, but my family isn't the richest and we sometimes have to make do. I step across the stained carpet to my teeny tiny closet to find a clean outfit to wear. I peel the grimy off-white tank top I wore to work off my muscular body and put on a clean gray t-shirt with several grease stains on it. An advantage to working at the automobile factory lifting things is that I have massive muscles. I run a comb through my brown hair and decide that that's enough primping for one year. I exit my bedroom and begin the walk with Gizmo to the town square. We get our fingers pricked and we walk to our respective sections and wait for the festivities to begin. I really hate the reapings because of all the extra people around. I can usually tell a person's character and not many of these people have good ones. Another thing that irritates me is that everyone in this district likes to stand in my way, I sometimes have to LITERALLY reach out and move them. I wait patiently through the speech from our escort Tallya and the mayor before getting anxious. Tallya digs through the female name bowl before finally picking a name. It's a girl who I don't know, but my heart goes out to her and her family anyways.

**Laurel Eldin **

I stand paralyzed as everyone turns to stare at me. Holly's face is sheet white as I try to put on a brave face, I know the other tributes will be watching this and I need to look strong. I walk with feigned confidence up to the tall stage. I take a deep breath and climb up the steps carefully. Tallya greets me with a warm and comforting smile. Maybe capitol citizens aren't all bad. I introduce myself and look out into the crowd. All of my friends look like deer in headlights which causes me to have a little internal panic attack. Tallya paws through the boy's name before finally picking one and reading his name. I don't recognize him at all, but my heart sinks as he emerges though the crowd.

**Piston Steel**

My vision swirls before me as I hear my name read out. My name! Of our thousands of people how did I get chosen! I even start to get angry. Why not an 18 year old? I'm 17, I only had one more year to go before I was home free. I can't stop my thoughts from racing as I climb the stairs to the stage. Instead, I begin to hum a familiar song to calm myself. I shake hands with the confident looking girl and hum the final notes of what might be the last song I ever sing in district 6.


	8. District 7 Reapings

_**Hey guys here's another chapter for you….I feel like they're getting shorter….I don't know it gets kind of boring writing about the reaping part so I kinda speed through it…whoops! I love getting reviews even if it's a critique! So um yeah! If you're reading this you should write a review please please please! Haha thanks for reading!**_

**Clio Toffey**

The sound of my laughter seemed to float up to the clouds and echo around the empty air. My boyfriend Shayle and I are lying on the green meadow grass engaging in a tickle fight and I was losing. My sides ached from laughing but I couldn't stop!

"Not fair," I cry, doubled over with laughter, "you have an unfair advantage, you know where I'm ticklish!" Shayle just smiles and gives me a final poke. Tears are beginning to spill over my eyes as I lay down trying to catch my breath. "You stink!" I manage to say before bursting out laughing again. Shayle raises an eyebrow and raises a perfectly pointed finger in a menacing way. My eyes widen to the size of saucers. "You wouldn't!" I cry. In reply he jabs me gently in the stomach and smirks at me from above. "OUCH!" I scream, pretending like he had actually hurt me. Shayle immediately comes to my rescue, apologizing profusely and asking me where it hurts. My grin clues him in to let him know I'm joking and he jumps back before I can get him back. Shayle carefully approaches me again and extends a hand to help me up. I beam at him graciously and slip my soft hand into his rough one. He pulls me right up into his warm embrace and I wrap my hands around his waist.

"I love you." I hear him whisper in my ear. I burrow my face into his soft maroon t-shirt and sigh deeply. I can feel him stroking the back of my head and I pull back to face him.

"Are you worried?" I ask quietly looking into his twinkling green eyes referring to the imminent reaping. His normally shimmering eyes cloud over in concern as he replies solemnly,

"Sure, I'm worried for YOU!" A loud bell interrupts our quiet moment and lets us know we need to hurry up. At the sound, I realize I'm actually REALLY nervous. I can feel myself shaking and my hands growing sweaty. He squeezes my hand and tugs on my arm for us to head home. Shayle and I are neighbors which is really nice because he's always right there when I need him. He drops me off at my wooden house. We live in district 7 so there's plenty of wood for us to keep our houses nice. Upon entering I immediately notice that my house smells like cookies; a rare treat. I quickly walk to the kitchen and manage to shovel down 3 cookies before my mom makes and appearance.

"Don't eat them all at once, you'll get sick," she says, "and hurry up!" I pop one last cookie in my mouth and cross the house to my bedroom. I relax a little when I enter my room and feel safer. I'd showered earlier so all I have left to do is my hair and get dressed. I slipped on the light purple dress I'd set earlier and brushed my hair into a sleek ponytail. I slipped on my shoes and sprinted away from my home in attempt to arrive on time. Shayle and I reunite once in the town square and wait for our fingers to be pricked. I grimace slightly as the sharp needle enters my finger and the peacekeeper identifies me as Clio Toffey. Shayle pulls me in for one last kiss before we separate and head to our respective sections. Once in the girls section I look for my friends Lenore and Sera and say hello to everyone. Lenore and Sera are wearing similar dresses to mine except in blue and orange.

"Clio you look so pretty!" They exclaim in unison making me smile.

"Thanks, so do you guys!" I say sincerely.

The crowd quiets down as we see our escort, Selena, walk out onto the wooden stage. She's dressed eccentrically as always. This year she's wearing golden eyelashes (which are probably real mind you), a short turquoise dress, and red stilettos. Interesting. She and our mayor smile brightly as they present us with their annual speech and video. The video is always a little scary to watch because it makes the whole experience seem almost…happy. Selena crossed the stage to the female bowl, plunged her hand in and pulled out a crisp piece of paper and read out the name.

"Clio Toffey!"

**Gemmerson Biles **

"So um…wanna go play football?" The entire room of my friends turned to glare at me; I guess this wasn't the right time to ask…you know, at my friend's grandma's funeral. I chided myself internally; I'm always doing stuff like that! Just blurting out random things at the wrong time! Embarrassed, I quickly got up and left the room to go home. That was stupid I think to myself as I walk across the funeral home lawn. I guess I'm not all that good with words, oops. Well at least I have more time to get ready now. I'm not worried about being picked for the reaping this year; my parents haven't let me take any tesserae (even though we could really use it) so I'm in a pretty good place. I'm the fifth son in my family, and I know they all love me, but they just don't have time for me. I do have some close friends though, so I guess it kinda makes up for it. Kinda. My house is in the middle of district 7 and is fairly tiny. I walk up my stone walkway and suddenly find that whole situation funny. Still grinning I push through the door to my busy house hold. It seems like everyone is always talking in my house and being loud. I pass through the house unnoticed to the bedroom I share with one of my brothers. Our room is empty for which I'm grateful. I tear the fancy tux from my skinny body and put on the blue polo shirt, black jeans, jacket, and hunting boots I'd laid out earlier. I pulled the outfit over my tiny legs and decided I was satisfied. I brushed my round brown hair out of my blue eyes and decided I was ready, just in time for the bell. My brother Grey and my sister Emily and I were up for reaping today, but it would be unlikely that we'd be picked. Little did I know… Today is my first reaping so I'm definitely nervous. We made our way to the area and I did best to ignore all 5 five of the people I just offended. I stood anxiously in the 12 year old section waiting for the ceremony to start. When I caught sight of our escort I was surprised, what a crazy get up! Despite my best efforts I let a laugh in the middle of an awkward silence. I kicked myself on the inside and tried to hide behind the kid in front of me. She pulled out a slip from the female bowl and read out the name of I girl I knew from school.

**Clio Toffey **

Wait what? How is this happening? My name has only been in there 2 times! I'm only fourteen! I'm not ready to die! I can feel tears streaming down my face as I embark on the blurry walk to the stage. I looked into Shayle's eyes and I could see he was crying too, but trying to be strong at the same time. I feel myself starting to have a panic attack as Selena calls the boy's name, which I kind of recognize.

**Gemmerson Biles **

"Gemmerson Biles!" Oh my god. OH MY GOD! That's ME! I want to scream. Instead I turn away from the stage in a desperate attempt to escape, but I'm surrounded. I can't move at the peacekeepers pretty much have to carry me up to the stage. I look at my brother Grey and I have a moment of relief when he raises his hand to volunteer, but quickly lowers it. I am on my own. I shake hands with the Clio girl who appears to be hyperventilating at this point. This is it I think. I am going to die.


	9. District 8 Reapings

_**Hey guys! I'd like to apologize for the bagillions of mistakes this chapter probably has I'm sorry! I'm just so excited! I'm skipping D9 and just putting them as bloodbaths so we can get on with the story! I hope you guys like this chapter as much as I do! If you like, leave a review! I love each and every one of you! If it weren't for the PM's and reviews, we wouldn't have even gotten this far! Thanks!**_

**Blake Daley **

I do my best to stop the stream of blood that is now pouring out of my finger. I sigh and gently pull the sewing needle out of my thin index finger, wincing in pain as it comes. This is the third time today, but I'm used to it. I work in one of the largest textile factories in district 8, so needle sticks are more common than blinking. I suck my finger for a second but don't bother wrapping it, it'll clot soon. In the mean time I insert a new, sterile needle into the high-tech machine. I press down on the steel peddle and maneuver the high end fabric through the sewing machine quickly. Today I'm embroidering a swirling pattern on dresses soon to be shipped to the capitol. Dresses are some of my favorite things to make because of all the attention you have to pay to them. It sure takes time, but the best things in life are worth working for. The loud alarm that signals we can go home rings and I delicately remove the dress from the machine and turn out my station light. The entire factory is growing darker from the station lights being shut off. I look down the row and see the harsh lights disappearing into blackness almost like a Christmas tree being shut off. I put my card through the puncher and grab my jacket on the way out. I'm practically blinded by the intense sunlight as I step outside but I quickly put on my sunglasses. District 8 for some reason is the brightest district so sunglasses are a must for everyone. My house is really close to the square and the factory so I have tons of time to get ready for the reapings.

After a short 5 minute walk I push through the French doors of my house. My father is an official at one of the nicest factories in the district so we have things pretty good. A big difference between my family and most others is that we get to keep pretty much any fabric we want, so our house is dripping in the finest fabrics the capitol can provide. The second my feet hit the handwoven carpet in the foyer my father has charged into view. He looks angry, as per usual, and appears to be sweating. My dad is pretty much always mad at me, I've always done something wrong and I'm just a disgrace. Yeah, I try to keep my distance from my dad.

"You Imbecile!" Here we go I think to myself. I raise my palms up to him in surrender and prepare myself for a verbal beating. "How many times do I have to tell you to TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF BEFORE YOU ENTER THE HOUSE?" His thin face is growing red and I roll eyes because my black tennis shoes are in my hands. This doesn't go over well with my father who continues to shout a few more profanities at me before stomping off in a huff. Whatever, typical Tuesday afternoon. I sprint up the carpeted stairs to my bedroom and gently close the door behind me. Finally alone, I let the tears spill over. I don't usually cry, and I hate to admit it but it really gets to me when my dad treats me like that. He wasn't always this way, but after my brother died from being stillborn two years ago he just kinda went off the deep end. I guess I wasn't a good consolation prize. I'm now only child and I don't have any family members to talk to, so I'm kind of on my own. I wipe a lone tear drop from my eye and remove my white work cloths. In place of them, I put on a black polo with khaki pants and white tennis shoes, my signature look. I run a brush through my medium length brown hair and wash my face until I know I've sloughed off all the dead skin.

I avoid my dad when I leave, not wanting any more confrontation. I get to the square in the last couple moments where I don't even have to get my finger pricked hard because my fresh skin breaks at the touch. I join the impatient crowd and look for my best friend Hugh. I break into a smile when I see him because he is sporting a true capitol get up. He's wearing a shining blue suit with matching shoes and its making me totally crack up. Hugh is grinning widely as we greet each other with a fist bump. His normally wild blond hair is gelled back, his look is total perfection. We don't get a chance to say hi before the speech and video start.

I immediately notice we have a new escort this year. Our old scarlet has been replaced by Moira. Wonder what happened. Moira doesn't leave much to the imagination dressed in a foggy plastic dress. I turn my head in disgust, not wanting to look at THAT. Moira walks daintily over to the female bowl and pulls out a name. "Margarita Saiden!" Moira reads in a suspenseful voice. I don't recognize the girl at all but I recognize who I assume is her mother when she begins to scream. The girl doesn't look overly scared and mounts the stage quickly. The girl is pretty; she has wavy blonde hair that seems to flow over her dress. I'm so busy thinking about the amount of work the intricate dress must've taken, I almost miss them call my name. I turn to look at Hugh who is pale. Neither of us took any tesserae so it's really strange that I was called. I feel a little nervous but at the same time, I mostly angry. I'm so angry at the capitol for doing this to us! The rebellion was our ancestors, not us, why should we be punished. How can those capitol socialites sit in their glamorous and watch kids kill each other for entertainment. I push the angry thoughts from my head and try to focus on what I'm going to do about you know, the probability of my imminent death.

**Meg Saiden **

I'm sprayed with a cool mist of water as my brother jumps into the pond right in front of me. I squeal in fake irritation and attempt to jump right on top of him. I miss so I splash him instead. The cool fresh water refreshes me and I let myself forget all my worries for a moment. I live for days like this when I can just spend time with my younger sisters and brother. I'm a second mom to them and I'm always looking out for them. This pond we're at is one of my best kept secrets. Its hidden away inside the forest at the edge of the district so we get it all to ourselves. I almost choke on a mouthful of water as the loud reaping siren goes off. I jump out of the water and pull my two sisters and brother out after me and wrap towels around all of them. I join hands with them as we sprint back to our house, laughing along the way.

The first thing that I notice when we enter is the stockpile of tesserae in the corner of our meager kitchen. I feel proud and terrified at the same time. I entered my name 50 times to earn this much excess. I need to take care of my family and this is one way to do that. On top of the tesserae I've been working in a factory since I was nine. I feel like it's my duty to help out in any way I possibly can, I mean, you take care of family. I get my siblings situated because my mom will already be on a train to the square since her work is on the complete opposite side of the district One of my sisters and my brother are eligible this year and I'm in charge of making them look suitable.

My bedroom is in the attic of our wooden house and is almost always burning hot. I laid out my dress earlier; it's a pale pink dress with a sash that goes around the waist. I slip on a pair of black flats on brush my wavy blonde hair out. As a final detail, I put on my favorite gold necklace with a gold star that is in the center of a white rose. I step back at take a look at myself in the mirror. I think that something's missing so I delicately draw on a light layer of gold eyeliner and draw small stars. I step back again and I can't help thinking that I actually look like a star. Happy, I get my siblings and begin the walk to the square.

At the square I meet up with my best friends Honna and Reiga as we wait for the speeches to begin. Our unfamiliar escort is wearing a horrendous plastic dress, and she doesn't seem to know she's sparking laughter in all of district 8. My hearts starts to race as she pulls the female name. I join hands with my friends and pray that I don't get picked. "Magarita Saiden!"

It's a vision straight out my nightmares. Everyone's looking at me; even my friends are gaping in shock. I feel lightheaded but Honna squeezes my hand gently. I hug her tightly one last time and I can feel her teardrops on my back. It takes everyone bit of my strength not to burst into tears on the spot. Instead, I pretend to be brave as I hop up the stairs just wanting for this to be over and to be alone so I can let my real emotions show. "So Magarita, are you excited?" I evade her question and answer instead,

"It's Meg…" My voice is trembling but Moira doesn't seem to even notice, she's already picking a boy's name. I don't notice the boy until he's shaking my hand. He's cute I think, and he looks sweet, maybe everyone will be nice this year, maybe I'll come home.


	10. District 10 Reapings

_**Hey guys I hope you like this one! Sorry for not updating yesterday! It really motivates me to write when I get reviews (Even if it's something I did wrong!) So PLEASE! If you're reading this, please review thanks so much!**_

**Crystal Hawk**

I narrow my eyes and turn in the direction of the joyful laughter coming from behind me. I see a few girls who appear to be laughing at some joke, eyes bright with laughter. I could feel the fury rising in my chest at their happiness.

"Could you please SHUT UP!" I shout at the girls loudly. They stop in their tracks, muttering something I can't quite make out, and head in the other direction. Still irritated, I kick a rock on the road in front of me into a bush. Stupid kids I think to myself angrily, they are so useless and frustrating! We'd all be better off if they didn't exist.

I get a few dirty looks as I continue down the street, but I don't care what people think about me, especially not anyone around here. I am far superior to everyone in this lame district and the world would be a much better place if I was the only one in it. I have to squint my eyes because of the sudden bright lights being shone in my face. I growl in annoyance as the directors testing the spot lights for the reaping shine them directly in my eyes. I slink off murmuring a few choice swear words, not wanting to confront them about their stupidity. I slide into an alley and lean against the brick wall and let my mind wander, not really think about anything, just simply existing. I could sit like this for hours, doing nothing but taking up space. It's like I'm living, but not REALLY living.

It registers in my mind that I've been sitting for at least a few hours, judging by the stiffness in my legs. I glance towards the street and see that people are starting to gather for the reaping. I lean my head against the wall and look upwards only to see a flock of black crows flying above the industrial building. More and more people are starting to show up and I know I've got to hurry if I don't want to interact with anyone more than I have to. I force myself up and get in the line to get my finger pricked. I try my best not to let anyone touch me but it seems like every single person in the freaking district has decided to try to lay a paw on me. I growl to let them know how much they are starting to irritate me. They sure back away quickly at this.

Satisfied, I hold my finger out and watch as the official takes my blood. I'm watching the tiny needle enter my finger but I don't feel a thing. After the clean shaven official finishes I walk quickly to the 15's section not wanting to have to stand next to the preppy girls, I made that mistake last year. I stand with my skinny arms crossed over my chest until the escort and mayor come out. Our escort Misrt cheerfully introduces the video to us . This year his hair is dyed a snow white and he is wearing a black tuxedo. It boggles my mind how he wakes up and thinks to himself "I look great! I'm going to go on national television!" What an idiot. I don't notice the video end but I do notice Misrt reaching into the bowl. For once in my life, I don't let my mind drift; I focus right on the tiny piece of paper in his hand.

"Crystal Hawk!" He reads out in a high pitched voice. I know I should feel upset, angry, panicked, or at least something not what I am. I let out a laugh and everyone turns to stare at me. At this, I only laugh harder and more hysterically. Finally, I'll be rid of this god forsaken district and its pettiness for good. Still howling with laughter, I climb the stone staircase to the stage. Misrt smiles at me gratefully, yeah I bet he's glad he doesn't have to deal with another crybaby like last year. A trace of a smile still hints at my lips as he goes over to the boy's bowl. I look out into the crowd until I realize that I have no one to look for.

**Dorn Till **

" Well at least I'm not ugly like you!" I snarl at my best friend Hector. We always insult each other like this, it's kind of our thing. Hector grins at punches me in the arm.

"Like you should be talking about being ugly." He replies. I fake offense and punch him back.

"You wanna go?" I question him jokingly. We both laugh and continue bickering as we walk down the path to my family's farm. I smell the cattle before I see them, but I'm used to it. I say goodbye to Hector at the gate, then I enter the field to feed the horses. My family is all involved in the cattle business, we have a total of 30. We also have 7 horses. My favorite is a midnight black one named Aura. I'm pretty muscular from my ranching days and riding horses. My long strides get me across the enclosure in under a minute. I pick up a soft bristle brush and begin to wipe the burs from the horses' coats and dumping the custom cattle feed into the troughs.

I'm patting Aura as the bell rings signaling that it's time to head to the reaping. I give Aura a final pat and head inside to our rustic home. Our house is fairly big and is decorated like a ranch. I have the entire basement to myself so I head downstairs to my room. I pull off my t shirt at torn jeans and put on a flannel shirt and un torn jeans, it's just what I usually wear to work. I head to the bathroom where I brush my blonde hair out of my light brown eyes and wash my face until it's free of dirt. Satisfied with my appearance, I head up stairs to talk to my family. They are all in the kitchen when I walk in and disrupt their conversation.

My mom beams when she sees me and my dad even shows the hint of a smile. My two sisters are both sitting at the table but my eyes immediately go to Kaila. She looks pretty in her Jeans and t-shirt. I'm extremely protective of her. She's 2 years younger than me and I always want to protect her, not that she appreciates it. She barely looks up as I pick up my lucky hat and place it on my neatly combed head. Eager to get to the square before it fills up too quickly; I leave the house and start the long walk. Once in town I reunite with Hector again, both of us are almost giddy because we're both 18 and almost out of the woods. We get our fingers pricked like usual and head to the 18 year Old's section. Our escort looks…nice I guess. Misrt's hair is dyed white with a black tux, very elegant I suppose. He gives us the usual speech before pulling a girl's name. "Crystal Hawk!" he reads, I don't recognize the name, but I don't usually, it's a big district.

I'm taken by surprise as I hear…laughter coming from the tribute. By the time she's heading up to the stage she's full out cackling. What a creep. Anyways, I focus again as Misrt pulls out a boy's name.

"Dorn Till!" I feel the smile vanish from my face and the color drain from my lips as I turn to face Misrt. I quickly regain confidence and put on a calm expression. I know getting upset will only cause me problems in the future. I look at a petrified Hector one last time as I climb the stairs to the stage. I nod confidently at the tribute girl, who I'm starting to think isn't right in the head. We share a firm handshake and just like that, I feel like my life is over.


	11. District 11 Reapings

_**Hey guys! So I decided to do things different this time! I'm doing the boy first because I usually get bored of writing by the end of the chapter and rush through the boy so I thought I'd give the boys a chance. Also in regards to that, I think I'm going to go back and add more to some of the boys after I finish the reapings (how many more, like three?) Anyways I was SOOOOO excited at the reviews I got on the last chapter and I'm glad to know these suckers are getting read! Aaaaaannnndddd yeah! Sorry this is such a long authors note and if you're feeling up to it, I loveeee reviews! **_

**Haden Saen **

I can taste my salty sweat and feel the small beads forming on my forehead. I regain my grip on the hot metal of the plow I'm laboriously pushing across the fertile field. I let my mind wander as I shove my full body weight of 120 pounds into the rusty plow. I've been working in the fields of eleven for as long as I can remember, but I've been working especially hard the last few months. This is the result of my mother's horrific death. 6 months ago, my mother fell asleep at the shipping factory she was working at and was found dead inside a grain washer, drowned and bruised. My dad took it pretty hard, my sister Rosie and I on the other hand, were sad but got by ok. I miss my mom a lot, but I manage.

Speaking of my sister Rosie, I hear the mocking jays echoing her four toned note across the valley, signaling me and the rest of the workers to stop working. Relieved, I release my iron grip on the plow and walk to the train that will take me to my small house. Rosie and I meet up at the dirty station and board the equally dingy train. The train ride is bouncy and jarring, but I'm used to it. I watch my 13 year old sister looks out the window with a carefree look upon her soft face. It's nice to see her relaxed, because I know that relaxed expression will practically melt off her face when we go to the reaping. The reaping. I feel my anxiety gnawing inside as I realize just how bad my odds are. My family is pretty poor so I've taken literally TONS of tesserae. I've totally lost count of the number of times my name is in the drawing, but it must be upwards of a hundred. I don't have time to contemplate my chances anymore because the siren that alerts us that we've arrived goes off.

Rosie and I exit the train quickly to avoid the traffic jam of sweaty bodies and walk down the dusty path to our small house. Once I'm home, I go upstairs to wash up a little, let's face it, I'm probably getting picked. I banish the pessimistic thoughts from my mind by reminding myself that there will be hundreds of thousands of other names in that crystal bowl. I run a cool wash cloth over my sticky skin and instantly feel refreshed. I put on a green button up shirt and roll up the sleeves for a more relaxed look. For bottoms I toss on some khaki pants. My brown wavy hair falls across my face just the way I like It.

I go downstairs to see a nervous looking Rosie who I pat on the back. Rosie and I join hands and start the short walk to the district square, already thinking about how I'm going to get to work on time. The stiff peacekeepers take our blood and Rosie and I exchange one last hug and I make my way to the 15's section. I meet up with my guy friends, Teron, Meson, and Jace and flash a quick smile to my girl friends Lieha and Felissa. Of all of them I have the most slips in that bowl for sure. My train of thought it interrupted as our escort Kirsten mounts the stage wearing a silver ball gown and her hair is dyed a crazy red/magenta. Her trilling laughter echoes across the entire square and her high pitched voice makes me cringe. She gives the usual speech along with the mayor and proceeds to the female bowl. I think I feel my heart skip a beat when she pulls the slip out, I'm so scared for my sister. I relax as Kirsten reads out a female name that's not my sister.

**Samantha Sten**

I beam at my friend Rosie from the treetop I'm perched in and nod. Rosie cups her tiny hands around her mouth and the four notes flow freely. I glance up in wonder as the mesmerizing creatures repeat her song with intense accuracy. Rosie's eyes twinkle as she looks back up and returns the nod. I can hear her footsteps pounding on the ground as I leap from tree to tree. Rosie stops at the foot of a tree that has only a few branches. I jump from the top branch and flip forward and land in a forward roll. Rosie looks impressed; you'd think that after the months I've been doing that trick that the novelty would've worn off.

"So," I ask, "are you nervous?" I ask the malnourished 13 year old. She bites her lip and looks up at me with an expression of uncertainty on her face.

"A little." She admits cautiously, not wanting to show fear. I wrap her in a warm hug as we walk to the train station. I hear her brother calling for her and I quickly excuse myself, blushing. I've had a crush on her brother, Haden for as long as I can remember. I've never told anyone and I don't exactly plan to. I sit behind Rosie and Haden on the bus, but neither one seems to notice. I brush my side sweep bangs out my face and watch intently as the train comes to a stop. Haden and Rosie depart quickly and head in the opposite direction of my house. I live in a fairly nice house in the center of district 11, which is more than most people can say. Upon entering my house I immediately head to my room, I want to have as much time as possible; I want to look my best. After bathing, I put on a silver shirt and a royal blue skirt with silver lining on the edges. My silver shoes shine in the light from being freshly polished by my father as I put them on. I set to work on my brown hair and decide on a side pony tail with a braid going from the top right of my head to the bottom left. My toned body looks good in this outfit and I feel satisfied. I'm eager not to have a run in with anyone in my family because I know it will make me nervous so I tiptoe quietly out the door.

My friends Marlene, Emma, and Tyler meet me at the check in table and we get our fingers pricked to together and head to the 16 year olds section. My friends and I joke around before the ceremony starts but fall silent as Kirsten's high pitched voice rings across the square. I turn my head and see Haden staring right at me! My heart sinks as I realize he's actually just glancing at his friend behind me. I'm not paying attention, but suddenly I hear my name being called. Startled, I whip my head towards the stage and Kirsten repeats my name again. I stumbled backwards and Marlene and Emma catch me, and I can feel both of them shaking. Panic is rising up inside me as I take the first couple steps towards the stage. My footsteps are light as I jump up the stairs and greet the crowd. I look and see that Marlene, Tyler, and Emma are sobbing . Next I look at Haden, but he's not even looking at me.

**Haden Saen **

I recognize the girl from the orchards; I think she hangs out with my sister. I feel really bad for her, she's sweet. Kirsten is still smiling brightly as she plunges a perfect hand into the boys bowl and pulls out a slip. She unfolds it quickly and what do you know, she reads out my name. I'm terrified, but I do my best not to show it and walk to the stage confidently, but quickly. I shake hands with Samantha who looks like she might pass out at this point. It's funny, because her face emulates the emotions I'm actually feeling. Real funny.


	12. District 12 Reapings

_**Hey guys! Sorry this chapter isn't very good….I wrote it kinda fast because I wanted to make another as quickly as possible. I might go back later and add a little more to it. Let me know what you think in the reviews! Pretty Please? **_

**Demetria Greene **

"Drip…Drip…Drip…" I watched quietly from my bed as the steady stream of tiny beads of water flowed freely from my ceiling. Great. What a perfect way to start the day, and TODAY of all days. I dragged myself out of my worn out bed and padded over to the kitchen to grab a metal bowl to hold the water. The tin bowl caught the water but intensified the sound of the drips. I rolled my eyes at the situation and headed over to my brother's room, it was already 12:00, and we needed to hurry if we wanted to be on time for the reaping. All it took was a gentle push for me to swing the door wide open. Once ajar I could see my baby brother was not sleeping like I thought he was. He was curled up in the corner of his bedroom reading a book that I couldn't see the title of. "Hey there," I said quietly, not wanting to startle him, "you need to start getting ready, the reaping is in a half hour." He looked up from his book with a look of fear on his face.

"You don't think I'll be picked right?" He questioned me.

"Of course not," I exclaimed "This is your first year Ethan you're only twelve years old, there are tons of other kids that have their names in that bowl. You practically have a 1 in a million chance of being picked!" His concerned expression softened into a relaxed one as he stood up and brushed himself off. "Now you've got to hurry alright?"

"Okay." He said, turning to enter his closet to pick out his outfit for the day. I sighed and run a hand through my jet black hair only to find a million tiny tangles. My footsteps echo as I make my way through the tiny house to find my mother who I knew would be lying on the ratty sofa, like she always is. "Hey mom," I said in a cheerful voice, trying to hide the underlying worry, "how are you feeling today." My sick mother glanced up at me with a look of exhaustion on her face.

"Not so great, I spent the night throwing up" I smiled at her weakly and put another blanket on top of her.

"Well look at it this way, at least you get to stay home and miss the reaping!" Her blue eyes widened in surprise.

"The reaping is today?" she asked, looking confused.

"Yeah mom, just like it is every year." I say starting to get worried. My mom sinks back into her pillow and closes her eyes. This isn't good. She's only 40; she shouldn't be losing her memory. I'll bet it's the stupid disease. She hardly gets off that sofa anymore, when she does, it's practically a miracle. I wish I at least had a dad to help me deal with all of this but he died in a plague when I was only ten. I used to feel like I didn't want to deal with it anymore, but then I met Robbie. In a way, he saved me. I was so depressed and tired of having to do everything; after all, I'm only 15. Most girls my age spend their time hanging out with friends but I just can't, I pretty much have to raise Ethan. Robbie and I met one day when I was sitting at a table in the town square having "one of those days". He stopped to talk to me when no one else had even bothered to see if I was ok. Since then we've been inseparable, basically attached at the hip. Even I don't really have any other friends, Robbie is enough for me. We both work in the coal mines even though you're supposed to be 18; we got in early with the help of a friend who has authority in our district. When I'm not working, I'm with Robbie. He always manages to make me laugh and make my day a little better. The loud irritating bell that signals that start of the reaping goes off and interrupts my thoughts. I can hear Ethan bounding down the wooden stairs from here. He walks into the room and I am impressed with the outfit he has managed to pull together. He is wearing dress pants and a blue button up shirt and my father's old dress shoes which are MUCH too big for him. I grin and sweep him into a tight hug. I can feel him shaking as I slip my hand into his and bid my mother farewell, heading off to the town square. I open the door and to my surprise Robbie is standing right outside our door, arm raised and ready to knock. He smiles as I left out a laugh and gently punch him in the arm.

"Hey," he says in a casual tone, "you look great." I look down at my soft green dress that seems to hug my body at all the right places and I have to agree.

"Thanks, so do you." I say looking at his blue sweater and beige dress pants. Robbie kneels down to be face to face with Ethan and pulls him into a hug.

"Hey there, are you excited?" he asks the frightened 12 year old with feigned excitement.

"Yeah, I guess so." Ethan replies. Robbie flashes him a quick smile and slips his hand into Ethan's other hand. We walk this way until we reach the check in desk and have to split up.

"Go with Robbie, he'll show you what to do." I tell Ethan, exchanging one last hug with him before he darts off. I stand up and brush myself off; heading to the 15 year old's section. The ceremony commences with our cheerful escort Timina and mayor Mulvarill telling us the same story they tell us every year. I steal a peek at Ethan only to see that he is entranced by the violent story. Timina's overly tall shoes make loud clicking noises as she makes her way to the female's bowl and shoves an elegant hand inside and digs around. She pulls out a slip of paper and unfolds it slowly.

"Your district 12 female tribute is…"

**Robbie Godder**

I peered at myself in the mirror and swept my fiery red hair out of my electrifying green eyes. I had to admit, I clean up well. You can hardly tell that I'd just spent an entire day in the mines with Demetria. That reminded me, I was so excited to see her outfit for the reaping. I knew it would be the same dress she wears every year, but it's one of my favorites. My heart beat faster just thinking about her. I'd always loved her so much (not that I'd ever tell her though). She has been pretty much my entire world since we met when we were little. She has had such a hard life and I think it's amazing that she manages to do all the things she does without ever complaining. She basically supports her family and raises her little brother. Yeah, I'd say she's been dealt a pretty rough hand. I force myself to stop thinking about her and make my way down the stairs to leave my house to meet her for the reaping.

"MOM, DAD, I'M LEAVING." I shout. No answer, of course, I wasn't expecting any different. I Sprint quickly down the gravel path that leads from her house to mine. I'm halfway there and know I really have to hurry, so I start to sprint. I reach her door and raise my hand as a bewildered looking Demetria opens the door. I grin at the situation and she lets out an enchanting laugh. She looks just as pretty as I remembered in that green dress I think to myself. I talk to her brother Ethan and try to console him before joining hands with him for the walk to the square. Once we get there Demetria hugs Ethan and hands him over to me to take to his section. I squeeze Ethan's hand before letting him make is way to the twelve year olds and me to the 16 year olds. I roll my eyes as some guys behind me heckle me as we wait for the ceremony to start. Such jerks, I may not be the coolest kid on the planet but whatever, it doesn't matter to me. Our mayor and escort read us the same exact story we hear every year before our escort, Timina, reaches into the large glass bowl that holds the names of the females. She pulls out a tiny slip and I can't help but hope that it is anyone but Demetria. But of course, it it's her.

**Demetria Greene **

"Demetria Greene!" I hear my name echo through the silent crowd. My stomach lurches and I feel the color drain from my face. Determined to seem strong, I put on a brave face as I make my way up to the stage. I can feel my eyes get red but I am determined not to cry. I stare into the passive crowd and wait as Timina heads for the boy's bowl. Again, she pulls out a perfectly little strip of paper, unfolds it, and reads out a name. It sounds familiar. Oh wait, it's my brother. My vision goes blurry and I can't see straight any longer

**Robbie Godder **

"Ethan Greene!" Demetria's baby brother. No, this isn't possible, there's no way two people would be called from the same family, it's practically impossible. First Demetria, and now this. I see Ethan making his way up to the stage and I panic. I know what I have to do. I push my way through the nervous crowd and into the aisle. My voice quivers as I shout that I volunteer. The crowd turns quickly to stare at me as I break into a sprint to reach Ethan. I pick up the sobbing boy in my arms and stroke the back of his head until the peacekeepers pull us apart. I start up the stairs and begin the journey to my impending death, because now, I know it's my duty to protect Demetria. We're told to shake hands by a cheerful Timina who's blabbering on about how fantastic this is. Demetria's thin hands meet mine and I accept that I'm probably going to die.


	13. Trains

**Ruby Jenkins: **

Our elegant train car was filled with laughter and talking as the bullet train hurtled along the short distance to the capitol. I'm practically beaming as I dig in to my decadent meal of salad and rolls. The buttery biscuit practically melts in my mouth and is unlike anything I've ever had before. Glare, our mentor, Stila, Teala, and I don't waste a second before having dinner on the train. We propose toast after toast and I'm giddy with excitement. This is MY year! I'm so pumped to get into the arena and win this thing and become the star I deserve to be. I've also had my eye on Glare. No matter how hard he tries, I can see right through his tough guy front. He is such a teddy bear, but at least he isn't annoying, I mean besides the fact that he won't shut up about his girlfriend. Anyways, our train is pretty nice, its similar to buildings and homes in District one, fancy. Teala and Stila won't stop complimenting and congratulating Glare and I, just like I like it. We watch the other district reapings on TV while we're eating desert. Some of them look like they might be tough competition, but I know that I have the ability to obliterate every last one of them. The only one that really sticks in my head is some girl from district 10, talk about freaky. She started LAUGHING when she was reaped, what a creep. The sun starts to set as the program finishes on the television. I lie down on the strikingly purple sofa and attempt to take a nap before we pull into the station. I toss and turn for a good hour; I'm far too excited to sleep. Lucky for me, not long after, I feel the train come to a halt and the light outside the train changes from the soft glow of the setting sun to the bright spotlights of the capitol. Glare and I each take a spot in front of a crystal window and wave to the cheering citizens of the capitol. They're all cheering and shouting our names excited to see how we'll preform in the area. I settle back into a soft chair and sigh. These will be the best games ever.

**Zaylie Wells: **

It seems like everyone in this stupid train car is on a mission to annoy. I really don't feel like talking to anyone of these preppy idiots, so I excuse myself to my bedroom in the train car. I gulp down an entire bottle of ginger ale and curl up in a plush chair and let myself think. I'm not worried about winning the games; I worried about how I'm going to manage to not kill every last tribute before we even get into the arena. The only person I'm slightly interested in is Ruby from district 1, she could be useful. It doesn't matter either way, because both us are careers so it's pretty much known that we'll ally. Zeke is alright but definitely isn't the sharpest tool in the shed. It's kind of weird being in this strange place but a consoling factor is getting to be away from my parent's arguments. Yes, I decide, that is most definitely the best part about being here. I hear the capitol before I even see it. The roaring crowds are screaming and growing crazy and as we pull up, they go ballistic, screaming and shouting like crazy. I can't help but smile as I remember that they are cheering just for me…well and Zeke of course, but mostly me.

**Trixxie Finnegan **

Ok, I'll admit it, I'm nervous. It feels weird to not be with Jules and my other worker friends. Since I've known them, I don't think we'll have ever been apart this long. I can tell the Carson kid is nervous too and he's approached me a couple times but I've just snapped at him. I'm not really in the mood to make friends right now and I just want to be alone. We ate dinner and I tried my best to make small talk and whatnot, but I wasn't feeling up to it. Our dinner mostly consisted of Carson being really awkward and Piffle and our mentor Berges talking about what they think the games would be like this year. Berges gives off a friendly aura but won't make eye contact with me. Instead, he stares at his fancy capitol certified leather shoes. On top of this he doesn't offer up any advice. Great I think to myself, I'm on my own. Carson is completely useless and so is our mentor. Both seem to be scared out of their wits. I'm so screwed. We've been on the silver train from a good 3 hours before we begin to approach the capitol. Of course I've seen it in pictures before but it's much grander in real life. I find myself hanging with my mouth open as we pull into the station and I catch my first sight of the capitol socialites. Carson must be in the bathroom vomiting again or something because everyone's eyes are fixated on me. I try to make eye contact with as many people as I can and force a smile on my face. Maybe I can do this after all.

**Hailey Gracefield **

I'm frozen. Stuck in the moment where I volunteered as tribute. This isn't happening I tell myself over and over again. Things like this don't happen to people like me. Haven't I been through enough? My dad was taken from me and now this? I feel the world moving around me as I move from the justice to the sleek train compartment I'm in now. I'm sitting in fetal position trying to calm myself. The boy from my district, Kaelp, I think it is, seems fairly nice, but he snapped at me earlier when I pronounced his name wrong. I decide that I better watch the reapings, If I don't I'll be at a disadvantage. I feel the pain of every kid in those districts, except 1 and 2. Nobody besides them seems excited about going into this brutal fight to the death. I can't stop thinking about Harry and our tearful last moments. How I screamed and clawed at the peacekeepers to give me one minuter. They just flung me to the side like I was some sort of animal. The painful memory sends the tears pouring again. I can't do this! I'm innocent! I'm only 15! This can't be happening to me! I manage to choke down some bread as we pull into the capitol station. I can't bear to look and see the people that will cheer for mine and 21 of the other kid's deaths. I just can't look.

**Orion Northcliff **

I'm still fuming about what my dad said to me as I board the sleek train that will take my district partner and I to the capitol in a matter of hours. He didn't even bother to come see me in the justice hall, only my girlfriend and siblings did. Despite how angry I am, a nagging feeling tells me that maybe he could bear to face what he had pushed me to do. Well it's too late now, what's done is done. My only regret is not telling Merope immediately. I command myself to stop thinking about what's in the past on focus on what my future holds. I chow down on hearty steak, mashed potatoes, corn, rolls, and pretty much every other dinner food you can imagine. This capitol cuisine is far nicer than what we get in district 5, but I suppose that's to be expected from the capitol. Whitley and talk to each other a little and I learn that she's related Luc Hedge, a tribute from a few years back. I vividly remember his horrific death because they played it over and over. It was one of the most spectacular bloodbath deaths I'd ever seen. Luc had managed to escape a pack of feisty careers by climbing atop the cornucopia, only to find that someone was already waiting for him. In a desperate panic, he lept from the cornucopia and landed on a career axe. It was horrible, especially after the careers continued to hack away at his corpse to ensure his death. It gives me the chills just thinking about it. I can tell it bother Whitley to talk about it, so I stop asking questions. We sit in silence as we approach the grand capitol. Neither Whitley or I bother to get up and wave to the ignorant capitol citizens. We watch the other district's reapings instead. The District 1 and 2 tributes are definitely a threat, but besides them, I don't see anyone I couldn't take.

**Piston Steel **

I'm amazed at how smooth the train ride feels and try to focus on that, rather than my destination. I try to keep my mind off it by humming some more. Coming from such a poor family, this train seems like it was built for kings. The attention to detail is magnificent. Each piece of mahogany furniture is carved to perfection. The main dining and living room cabin is adorned with crystals and high quality fabrics. No doubt the best Panem can offer. I'm fairly certain My district partner, Laurel, is terrified of me so she keeps her distance. I don't mind though because I get all the food and comforts of the dining car to myself. The food selection is buffet style and I sure help myself. As I feast upon the rich capitol food I watch the other district's reaping. No surprise that district 1 ad 2 are killing machines, but something intrigues me about the district 10 boy. There's something mysterious about him. I don't see Laurel literally at all the rest of the night, which gives me time to plot and think about who I might want to ally with. Definitely not Laurel, who seems like sort of a pushover. Maybe 10 or 11. Both seem strong. I'm taken aback as bright capitol lights fill the dim car as we move through the viewing station. I look out the window to see excited capitol citizens. I wave and blow kisses, not bothering to go fetch Laurel. After all, this is a competition.

**Clio Toffey **

We've been on this train for like 30 minutes and I'm already homesick. I miss the piney smell of my home, my mom and dad, my friends, and most of all, Shayle. I miss him so much I can literally feel my heart breaking. What I wouldn't give to be back home wrapped in his strong arms and enveloped in his musky scent. Our 3 minute meeting was filled with lots of tearful kisses, hugs, crying, and I love you's. It's hard to be dating someone for 2 years and suddenly have them ripped away from you. Before the peacekeepers separated us, he slipped a roll of fabric that I instantly recognize from one of his tshirts. I've been holding it to my face since the second I got on the train, hoping his scent doesn't fade from it. I'm lying on one of the beds on the huge train, I'm not even sure if this is my designated room. At this point, I don't even care. I so exhausted physically and mentally from the emotional day I've just had. I make it through our district reapings before I fall asleep. I don't bother to set alarm to wake me up to see the excited capitol citizens. They'll be so crushed.

**Meg Saiden **

I'm still shaking as I board the train that will take me to the capitol. Despite the amazing accommodations, I can't ignore where its taking me. I talk to Blake a little and find out that he's really sweet, he's sure to be a hit with the capitol and the female tributes. On the other hand, I haven't any idea on how I might make alliances, or get sponsors. This entire process is new territory for me, I barely even watched the games on tv. I consider as Blake for help but I'm sure If I can trust him yet, instead, I turn to our mentor, Karl. Karl won the games about 5 years ago, and I'm genuinely glad he did. He's so real and funny, which is a refreshing break from the fake plastic escort. He tells me about his experience in the games and how he never killed a single person. I'm so glad to hear a story about someone who got to the top without stepping on anyone to do it. He gives me some useful advice about making friends and alliances before we pull into the station. Even though were one of the last districts to arrive, everyone is still cheering and shouting happily. Blake and I look out the same window and wave and smile at everyone. Blake gives me a reassuring look. Maybe this won't be as bad as I thought.

**Dorn Till **

The initial anxiety and shock of my reaping has worn off now, I'm just trying to make the best of things. On the bright side, the food and train are amazing, not that Crystal would know. Currently she is in a corner rocking back and forth murmuring some things I'd rather not repeat. Everyone just disregards her and focus their attention on me which is fine by me. Misrt and our mentor Gaia are fawning over me and showering me with praise. Misrt even compliments me for putting a napkin on my lap before I begin to eat. I stick to a light meal of garlic chicken and bread. I don't want to upset my stomach. After dinner I settle into a soft chair in front of the high tech television to watch the reapings. One person stands out in my mind, the girl from eleven. She's quite enchanting and I'd like to get to know her more. Also, I do like the looks of allying with the district 11 boy. I'm satisfied with my planning as we pull into the station. I wave and smile, I'm just a perfect little tribute.

**Sam Sten **

My fingers have finally stopped tingling from nervousness, and now they're tingling for a different reason. I'm so excited to actually have a conversation with Haden. He isn't reserved at all and tells me everything. I reveal that I've been friends with Rosie and suddenly we have so much to talk about. We talk over our rich dinner and I remember why I've had a crush on him for so long. We sit down together and watch and discuss the reapings. Both of us are interested in the boy from ten and both tributes from 8. We discuss strategy and share our fears. I feel closer to him. We both wave to the captiol citizens as we pull through the station. I'm much calmer now and I feel somewhat relieved.

**Robbie Godder **

The silence is almost unbearable as the long train ride drags on. Demetria barely looks at me as we eat dinner, I'm not sure if she's scared, worried, or just doesn't know what to do. We both are in awe of the selection of food on the train and the detail of it. After a dinner of soup and salad, we sit on the sofa and get ready to watch the reapings. She asks what I think of everyone and I'm slightly startled considering it's the first words to me she's said since we got on this train. I ignore her question and ask her one instead. "Whats wrong?" She sighs and runs a hand through her dark hair.

"I don't know, sorry if im being rude, I just don't know what to make of this yet, and It makes it worse that you're here. What if something happens to you?" In response I wrap and arm around her shoulder. At first she stiffens, but then relaxes. We both fall asleep like this and don't bother to wave hello.


	14. Stylists

**Hey everyone! I wanted to toss something in before I went to the chariot rides, so here you go! I drew the names that I would write from from a hat so yeah! If you liked this chapter you should leave a review. Love you guys!**

**Samantha Sten **

I was having one of the good ones. Dreams that is. I was back home, with Rosie, with my family, and I was anywhere but here. When I wake up, I stretch out happily, but then remember where I am and what I came to do. I sink back under the covers and try to go back to sleep, but it's no use. I can feel the cold sweat coming on and I decide to take a shower to calm myself. My feet have barely landed on the cashmere rug before an excited Kirsten bursts into my room.

"Oh I'm just so glad you're awake! It's time to take you down to the stylists!" She exclaims at me, rubbing her hands together in an irritating manor. Creepy, it's like she was watching me, waiting for me to wake up. I force the idea that maybe more people than just Kirsten are watching me out of my head and allow myself to be led to the dining room. It was really late when we arrived last night so I didn't get a good chance to look around. In the daylight, the apartment seems less intimidating. It bears many similarities to the train in that everything is the best of the best. I'm almost certain the dining room table has diamonds embedded in it. Haden emerges from a room opposite the apartment from mine, wearing pajamas just like me. He looks groggy and his usually neat brown hair is going in every direction. He gives me a bright smile when he sees me that momentarily stop my heart. I try to appear relaxed as Kirsten and our mentor Gregory shove us into the titanium elevator that will take us to the stylists. My heart is racing as we drop 1 floor below the first to what I presume is the stylist and train center. The heavy elevator doors slide open smoothly and I can't help but gasp.

We are standing in front of a room filled with 24 glass tables and curtains separating each station. I can see that most of the tributes are already here and on their crystal "beds". I look around and catch my first glimpse of the other kids. They remind me of well…myself. Everyone looks nervous as the stylists work away. There are some muffled shouts from the girl from 10 as her stylists try to wash her matted hair to her dismay. I cast one last glance Haden's way before I too am whisked away. They make me take off my warm pajamas and put on a papery gown. Feeling exposed, they set to work on me, washing my hair and body, painting my nails, plucking my eyebrows, waxing my legs and applying light makeup. There are a few soft cries from the bed next to me and I can't help but wonder who it is. I don't have time to figure it out before I'm taken off again to meet my head stylist.

They leave me in industrial looking room for what seems like an hour. I get so impatient; I get off the table and pace back and forth, just wanting some human interaction. I try the doorknob, but of course it's locked. I've just returned to my table when a sharp knock at the door disturbs the eerie silence and a short woman enters. She looks refreshingly realistic for a capitol citizen, her hair is a natural brown and her eyes are a familiar blue. She smiles at me and congratulates me, just like most people do. I sit still as she examines my bare skin and runs a few ideas by me.

"You're from district 11, agriculture." She says towards me. I nod and she smiles. "I think I have the perfect outfit planned for you." She gestures towards a black garment bag that I just notice has been hanging in the corner of the room the entire time. I try to return the smile, but first time in my life, I feel afraid.

**Trixxie Finnegan **

They've left me alone, _again. _I'm trapped in a stone room at the bottom of the tribute center and I'm not quite sure anyone even knows I'm here. I put a hand to my face, and for the first time in my life, when I pull it back, it's totally clean. I just spent the last…well I don't know how long it took actually, but it seemed like a few hours at the least, being perfected by a team of creepily dressed stylists. I lied there totally exposed as they washed me and ripped every hair from my body, not pleasant. But I have to say, I'm pleased with the result.

I don't think I've ever been so clean in my entire life. After they put me through that, they just dumped me off in this freezing cold room and a fresh paper dress. I fashion myself some sort of pants out of the dirty dress in an attempt to warm myself. I've been sitting in this room for like…ever. I just want my stupid stylist to come in and get this over with. I decided that they are actually cranking the air conditioning up farther because I'm literally freezing to death. By the time the door is flung open, I'm practically blue. My stylist doesn't seem to notice and instead tells me about 30 times how _adorable _I am. I glare at her coldly as she describes the amazing outfit she's put together for me. She tells me about how much time it took and how GREAT I'm going to look. I give in to curiosity and peering into the black garment bag she pulls out. Good grief.

**Glare Zenton**

When I woke up this morning, Ruby barely even looked at me, I get the feeling that she thinks she's all that. My day thus far has been fairly uneventful. In fact, the most interesting part was probably the assortment of buttons in the elevator. I was tempted to just run my hand down them to see them light up, don't worry, I resisted the urge. Both Stila and Teala seem to be please with me as we travel down to the stylists. We're the first ones there and everyone fawns over us. It doesn't take long for either ruby or I to be cleaned and fixed, we're both practically perfect anyways. A quick shave and washing later, I find myself in a stone room waiting for my stylist. I guess it didn't take the prep team very long to fix us, I mean we're practically perfect anyways. The room is a chilly but comfortable temperature, but I can't shake the feeling the capitol is trying to preserve us alive.

I don't have much time to contemplate that theory before my main stylist bursts into the room practically squealing. Her hair is dyed an electric turquoise and she is wearing a emerald green dress, very high fashion. She showers me with compliment after compliment as she examines my face. She pulls out a black bag and brandishes it in front of me excitedly. The contents of that bag might just be my saving grace.


	15. Chariots

_**Hi guys….So sorry this chapter is awkwardly short, I just couldn't really think of anymore to write especially since I threw in some stuff about the stylists. I'm starting to work on the interviews so…YAY! I really hope you like this chapter…and if you do….you should leave a review (haha I'm a poet and I didn't know it) anyways, I hope you enjoy and…REVIEW!**_

**Gemmerson Biles **

I'm _so _screwed. A tree? Really? These might be THE most important moments of my life that can make or break my chances of getting home, and I'm dressed as a freaking tree. I mean seriously? My district partner Clio looks just as miserable as I feel as we board the metal chariots that will parade us past the crowds in just a few moments. Everyone else looks glamorous in their gowns and suits, but Clio and I look like outsiders. She doesn't even make eye contact with me, and she's visibly blushing. Our stylists are fawning over us and telling us that we look great but I don't believe it for a second. Even the inch of powder white make up our escort is wearing can't disguise the concern. I take small wobbly steps towards the chariots because the darn trunk I'm wearing really constricts my range of movement. A few leaves fall off my head as I hop onto the chariot. Despite the hideous outfit, Clio's hair and makeup manages to make her look good, quite a feat. The grand room is abuzz with excited voices as the chariots prepare to launch. I can hear the roar of the crowd through the steel doors even before they've opened. I grip the metal bar in front of me tightly, afraid that I'll fall off. I hear the buzzer go off and suddenly, the large doors open and I'm thrust in front of the entirety of Panem.

**Crystal Hawk **

This is ridiculous. Outrageous even. My oh so intelligent stylists have literally designed the most horrendous outfit I've ever seen in my entire life. They've tossed me into a purple, sparkly, tulle MESS! I'm so furious I can't even see straight as I enter the chariot boarding room. My district partner whose name I feel is unimportant to learn, so I call him that giant idiot (TGI for short) is sporting an equally disgusting purple button down with rustic designs on the shoulders. We look dumb. I make a point to scowl and each and every tribute as we walk to the metal chariot clearly marked with a 10. As much as I hate our outfits, everyone else looks worse, except for the tributes from 7 who are dressed as trees, which is awesome. TGI keeps trying to make small talk, but I verbally assault him every time he does. I can't imagine how that freak from one must feel because they have her in an absolutely atrocious long shimmering red figure skater-esque type gown. As TGI and I stand in our chariot I start to get impatient so I decide to make some changes to my dress. I manage to shred a few pieces of tulle before the alarmed stylists hurdle towards me and force me to stop. Little do they know I plan to just rip it after we get going on this dumb chariots and I'm out of their reach. The thought actually brings a smile to my face.

**Blake Daley **

I hate to admit this, but I'm nervous. My blue eyes have lost their twinkle and I'm barely forcing a smile. I felt so calm and confident on the train ride…but now, I can feel my anxiety start to overwhelm me. This will be pretty much my first time coming face to face with the other tributes, I don't count an arm or a leg here or there in the prep area. I'm quite pleased with the outfit that the stylists have produced for Meg and I. I can feel what I think are the startings of an alliance are between she and I already. I'm really fond of our outfits and I think we'll make a good impression. I've been given a white suit with gold embroidery. The fabric is nothing like I've ever felt before, almost like thick 1000+ count sheets. Meg too looks stunning in a matching halter top v-neck dress with similar gold embroidery. I have a growing feeling that the gold embroidery is literally spun gold. Meg and I attempt to make small talk while we wait for the other tributes to finish up with final touches. I decide to check out this year's tribute so I quietly walk around and check everyone out. District 1 seems to have gone with a red theme this year and the girl is wearing a slinky red dress. It's pretty…I guess. On the complete opposite end the district 2 kids are wearing royal blue and the girl seems to be wearing a diamond studded dress. As I continue to observe the competition, I almost trip over a tall girl with brown hair sitting against the wall. The girl who is wearing a shell pink mermaid gown with pearls scrambles to her feet and her emerald eyes widen in surprise.

"My name is sorry, Samantha!" she spits out awkwardly. I let my pursed lips widen into a smile as her face turns a bright pink. "I meant _sorry _my name is sam-"

"Samantha," I finish for her, "I got it." She beams back at me and for a moment, I let myself forget where I am and lose myself in one of the kindest smiles I've seen since I got here.


	16. Beat That

_**Hey Hey! I told you I was excited for the interviews! I was so excited I sat down and wrote one. I don't know If I'll do every district in its own chapter or if I'll mix them up, but I was just so excited to see what you thought of this. Yayayayay! So yeah! If you liked or disliked, review! If you're one of those people that reviews everytime , pat yourself on the back, You're awesome! See you next time!**_

**Ruby Jenkins **

I can feel the thick blanket of tension floating over the other tributes, but it doesn't affect me. I'm indescribably excited and SO ready to show the world who Ruby Jenkins is. It's only a matter of time before I'm a household name really. I'm so glad to finally be out from underneath the shadow of my sisters. Let's face it, I'm fabulous on my own. I'm even pleased with the outfit the stylists have given me for my interview. I was given the most stunning ruby red rhinestoned halter dress that is literally skin tight. The halter ties in the back in a diamond studded bow. It's perfectly me. To finish off the look, I'm sporting a pair of thin strappy strawberry red shoes. I can hear our interviewer, Leporis Honeman's signature theme playing from the stage. I crack my knuckles and roll my head in a circle. Let the show begin.

I place my soft hands on my slender hips and turn to face all the other tributes with a smile on my face. Most look straight ahead with vacant stares in their eyes. I'm disgusted. This will probably be the best moment of their worthless lives, they should at least enjoy it. I don't have even a second longer to shoot dirty looks at the stupid tributes before I hear my name being called by a stout man in a silk tuxedo. I blow a kiss to Glare and head up the glass steps to the stage. `

I stand patiently in the wings and wait for my name to ring across the grand stadium. I hear the ending of Leporis's speech and begin to walk out.

"RRUUUUUUUBBBBBYYYY JENKINSSS!" My name doesn't even get a chance to echo before the capitol citizens are screaming. I make my way to Leporis where I smile and blow kisses to my fans. Leporis beams at me and beckons for me to take a seat next to him on the white leather chairs. The screams are still ringing in my ears and I can barely make out the first question.

"How _excited _are you to be here?" He roars, trying to get his voice over the insane crowd. The smile I flash earns me a few high pitched shrieks before I answer.

"More than you could _possibly _imagine!" I reply brightly. Leporis doesn't even acknowledge the screams this time and instead continues on.

"Now tell us Ruby, what was going through your mind when you volunteered?" He exclaims his voice full of genuine inquisitively.

"What was going through my head? Well…I'd have to say…my dreams of being here with all of you!" I say beckoning to the crowd. They literally lose it. People are standing and cheering and screaming, I think I even see a few overwhelmed people crying. Good. I have them eating right out of the palm of my hand. Leporis smiles brightly at me and adds in to the applause.

"Was everyone excited for you back home?" he asks loudly.

"Are you kidding? Excited? They were ecstatic and dare I say it…jealous?" The crowd roars with laughter and I smile in response.

"And might I add, what a daring outfit you presented with us today!" He says excitedly. In reply a stand up and place a hand on my hip in a sassy pose, a pout on my puffy lips. Leporis begins to laugh along with the crowd at my daring attitude. I loud bell goes off signaling the end of my turn. Leporis sticks out his lower lip in exaggerated sadness and reaches to kiss my hand. I wave one last confident farewell and head back down the crystal hallway.

When I reenter the room with all the other tributes I'm given quite a few looks which I ignore and instead stick my perfectly round nose up in the air in disgust. I stride past each and every one on my way back to district one's apartment. _Beat that freaks. _

**Glare Zenton **

Phew. I'm so glad I didn't have to go first and that Ruby has set the crowd up for my entrance. I feel I tiny tinge of nervousness in my stomach but nothing I can't handle. The room seems almost empty as Ruby's big ego is no longer there to fill it up. Only moments after she strutted arrogantly down the hall back to the apartment I hear my name being called. I don't bother to look back at the other tributes, I can imagine their expressions. The chubby man who took ruby minutes earlier leads me down a crystal hallway to wait for Leporis to call my name. I give my glittery black suit and silver tie a final glance before I hear him call for me. I take a deep breath and step confidently out onto the shimmering stage. Leporis looks glad to see me and we exchange a firm handshake before I sit down in the round white chair. I can hear my name being chanted from somewhere in the back of the stadium as Leporis asks me the first question.

"So Glare, what do you think of our glorious capitol?" The crowd finally quiets down eager for my response.

"I love it! And it's only made better by all of you!" I say charismatically, trying desperately to turn up the charm. The crowd screams wildly and I think I hear a few wolf whistles thrown in there. Leporis seems to hear them too and chuckles to himself as he asks me the next question.

"Is there anything you have to look forward to when you make it home?" he says adding emphasis on the when. I grin and run a hand through my hair before replying.

"Definitely, I'm especially excited to see my _girlfriend_." I say drawing the word out. At this I earn myself a few boos to which I simply shrug at.

"Tell me about your fabulous outfit!" Leporis says curiously.

"I don't know what to tell you! Its magnificent and the stylists really had a great plan in mind for me!" I say kindly.

"And your district partner Ruby, what're your thoughts?" I look in mock seriousness into the audience and fake a whisper.

"To tell you the truth, she's _hot_ but she's crazy!" The crowd goes wild at my daring reply and I almost don't hear the buzzer go off. Leporis shakes my hand again in farewell and I wave my way off the stage.

I try to give everyone reassuring looks as I go walk through the tributes and back to the apartment I share with Ruby. One boy from I think is 7 looks especially terrified. I want to reach out and tell him its ok but I don't. I just walk away.


	17. Butterflies

_**OK everyone! So for this chapter there is a short POV of a character that I picked randomly! At the bottom will be the training scores and each tributes weapon revealed! SO yeahhhh! The next chapter should be the start of the games so YAYAYAAYAYAY! And I have a question for you, who (besides your character) is your favorite character so far and who is your least favorite, who would you like to see more of? Toodles! **_

Meg Saiden

"SWOOSH!" I don't even have time to move before I hear and feel the short blade graze the side of my cheek. I raise a trembling hand to the gash and feel the bloody cut. I look around to see if any officials are going to get the person that threw it but all I see is the district 11 boy hurdling towards me. He barely screeches to a halt before colliding with me. "I'm _so _sorry! I don't know what I was thinking, I'm no good with knives so I don't know what I was doing throwing them around! Are you alright? You're hurt! Let me help! Gosh I'm so sorry." Despite the stinging cut I burst into laughter at his panic.

"It's alright, really, it doesn't hurt…that bad." He looks horrified for a moment before he realizes that I'm just kidding. He bends down to pick up the bloodied knife and holds out a large hand.

"Haden." He says with a smile as I shake.

"Meg." I reply. He stands there awkwardly for a moment before heading back over to knife throwing. I think I may have just made an ally. I turn my attention back to the spear throwing target I'm practicing at. I pull my arm back and aim for a second and throw. The metal spear hits the bulls eye on the blue dummy's heart for the 15th time in a row. I'm a little surprised at myself for this, it's not like I've ever practiced or anything. I'm walking over to the spear caddy to pull out another just as the lunch buzzer goes off. Today is the last day of training so they are giving us lunch before we head into the game maker evaluations. A large garage type door opens on the side of the training center revealing a posh cafeteria. The lunch room is the same stony color as the training center and there are 12 tables that seat 12 people each. In the center of each table is a blue flower centerpiece that also has white lilies. I almost forget to breath for a moment just looking at it, it's quite magnificent.

The other tributes are rushing into the room quickly to get the best spots. I see the tributes from district 1 and 2 are sitting together and they seem to already know each other from the way they are joking and laughing. The girl and boy from 4 are sitting at opposite sides of one of the stone tables same as the tributes from 3. The guy and girl from 5 whose names I think are Whitely and Orion are sitting right next to each other but aren't really talking. The girl from 6, Laurel, is sitting at the abandoned 2 table on the other side of the room from piston who does not look impressed by the lunchroom. The 7 tributes are sitting right next to each other and seem to be getting along well. I look over to 8 and see something weird. My partner Blake is sitting with the 11 tributes, the boy who cut me and the girl Samantha. I decide to head over there since the boy from 11 and Blake are pretty much the only people I know. Blake has turned the charm way up and is just introducing himself as I sit down.

Haden throws another apologetic smile at me as I sit down quietly. The girl Samantha outstretches a thin hand and introduces herself to me too.

"I think it's rather nice that we get this opportunity to meet each other!" she says with a smile. I nod my head in agreement; these people might just end up being my alliance. Haden begins to say something when a group of festively dressed avoxes appear from what I presume is the kitchen. They set a covered metal platter down in front of us before returning through the steel doors they came from. Everyone is looking around at each other to see if anyone else knows what to do. With a shrug, Blake pulls his silver covering off the plate and everyone follows suit. My jaw drops open as I look at what's underneath. It's a bowl of salad, pasta, steak, mashed potatoes, and lemon chicken. Each entrée is separated by a glass divider. I look around at everyone else and I almost last, everyone looks shocked. It's unlikely that anyone has ever seen this much food in one place all for them before. Haden and I don't hesitate to dig right in and everyone else quickly follows. I look up after a satisfying bite of rich pasta and meet the eyes of haden who is coincentally, looking right into mine. My heart jumps into my throat and my stomach fills with butterflies. I think I'm starting to like him.

**TRAINING SCORES **

Ruby Jenkins: 10 (Short bladed weapon)

Glare Zenton: 9 (Mace)

Zaylie Wells: 11 (Knives)

Zeke Current: 10 (Almost all weapons, usually sword)

Trixxie Finnegan: 5 (no particular weapon)

Carson Smith: 4 (Sword)

Kaelp Nuran: 7 (trident)

Hailey Gracefield 7 (bow and arrows)

Orion Northcliff: 8 (bow and arrow)

Whiteley Hedge: 6 (daggers)

Gemmerson Biles :3 (knives)

Piston Steel: 7 ( hammer)

Laurel Eldin: 4 (slingshot)

Clio Toffey 6 (whip)

Meg Saiden: 9 (spears)

Blake Daley: 10 ( bow and arrow)

District 9 tribute girl: 4

District 8 tribute boy: 3

Crystal Hawk: 3 (knives)

Dorn Till: 11 (pitchfork)

Haden Saen; 9 (sword)

Samantha Sten: 11 (knives)

Demetria Greene: 7 (daggers or bow and arrow)

Robbie Godder: 6 (sword)


	18. Falling for you

_**HEY ERRRRYYYBOODDDYYY! Its ARENA TIME! I hope you like this chapter and get ready for some twists and turns because this hunger games is going to be the best ever! WARNING! This chapter does contain one swear word and scenes of death so yea, just be warned. (Sorry I know that isn't really necessary but just in case.) and I know I asked for specific arena outfits but I just decided to have everyone wear the same thing. Soooo yeah! You should totally leave a review! Can we make it to 50? I love you all and thanks for reading! Can you guys tell me if you like the way I set this chapter up or should I change it? Thanks! Byeee!**_

**Laurel Eldin **

The hot tears sting as they run down my face of fresh pink skin. I can't even begin to form words or thoughts I'm so terrified. My stylist doesn't even seem to take notice of the sobbing girl in front of her as she puts the final touches on my outfit. _This will be the last outfit I ever wear. _I'm being a little pessimistic but who can blame me? I'm 13 heading into a death match against kids who are 17 and 18. The thought only makes me cry harder. I think back to earlier this morning. I woke up from a bad dream in a cool sweat with tears in my eyes. Breakfast was hard also, especially since my district partner treats me like I'm a worthless 2 year old and I haven't made a single friend here. I would give anything to go back to that elevator ride that took us down here, to not be _here. _I don't think much of this year's outfit, it's a leather jacket with blue jeans and a black t-shirt, and at least it's warm. I have no idea what the arena might look like and I'm definitely scared. After the elevator ride Piston, I and all the other tributes boarded a thin black hovercraft that brought us here for final prep work before the games. On the hovercraft the inserted tracking devices under our skin with a huge needle, it really hurt. I press my forearm were the tracker is and I can vaguely feel a vibrating coming from it. I think my stylist must be done because she backs away from me with a pleased smile on her face. _30 seconds to lauch. _I whip around desperate, looking for a way out. My stylist who shall remain nameless only smiles wider and claps her hand together excitedly. _20 seconds to launch. _

"NO! I'M NOT READY!" I scream loudly clawing at my neck. "I'm 13 someone help me!" I sobbing so hysterically I hardly notice the stylist shoving me into the glass tube that in- _10 seconds to launch. _Ok, 10 seconds, will take me to my possible death. The tube closes tightly and I can't hear anything besides my own ragged breathing. I'm only 13 I cry to myself as the clear glass tube rises into the area.

**Dorn Till **

This morning and last night were a complete blur. After the scores were read on tv I don't remember anything. I'm sure my night followed the same routine dinner and bed and waking up at 5 o clock to head to the area, but I don't remember. All I remember now is walking down the industrial hallway to my final prep room. I feel like my stylist and I are the only ones in the entire world in this room. Its painfully silent besides the rustling of the leather jacket as my stylist slides it onto me. I don't really have a connection with him, in fact, I don't even know his name, but at this point, I'm thankful for his presence. He doesn't speak to me and instead folds his hands in his lap after the final zip of the jacket. I'm expecting the arena to be chilly since the outfit is a heavy leather jacket with a black t-shirt and blue jeans. I wipe my eyes slowly hoping that maybe this will all have been a dream and that I'll wake up in my own bed back home. No such luck. I surely must only have a few seconds left.

A cool female voice confirms my suspicions by telling me that I actually have exactly 20. I decide that is now or never and step into the glass cylinder which closes immediately. I don't press against the glass or scream like I know some of the tributes will, instead I close my eyes as a shift under my feet tells me I'm moving up.

**Demetria Greene **

There's no freaking way. I feel the cool air on my face as I rise into the arena and I catch my first glimpse. All 24 of us are arranged in a neat and even circle around the golden cornucopia. Its arranged the way it usually is with the good stuff in the mouth and the lame stuff around the edge, this is isn't what baffles me. No, the surprising part is the stone walls about 40 feet behind us, leading into what appears to be a maze.

There are 24 entrances to the maze directly behind each and every tribute. I look around at everyone else and they all appear to be just as confused as I am. I don't think anyone wants to go in the maze but our only other choice is hang around the cornucopia, and that that's not much of a choice. I look around at all the other tributes and am immediately suprised. The once confident kids that I've spent the past few days with are gone and have been replaced by wide eyed, scared children. Everyone looks vulnerable, even ever cocky Ruby. Robbie is about 5 tributes away from me, but he's not even looking at me. His eyes are fixated on the golden cornucopia straight ahead.

Things have been pretty tense between us especially after the interviews. Mine went fine but when Leporis asked Robbie if he liked anyone, he paused for the longest time before saying no. I swear my heart stopped in that moment that he didn't say a word. What did it mean? Does he like me? Is that why he paused? A million thoughts are racing through my head as I train my eyes back on the blue countdown clock above the cornucopia. I freeze in terror as I watch it turn to one.

**Clio Toffey **

I freeze at the sound of the gong. It's so much louder than they make it seem on tv. It's not even been a millisecond before I see the careers reach the cornucopia. The weird thing is that it doesn't seem like the boy or girl from 4 are in with them this year. I can tell right away because I see the boy whose name evades me run right at them with a sharpened spear. Everything feels like it's moving in slow motion. I see the girl from 10 running at another career and she suddenly stops. The girl, Zaylie I think, seems taken by surprise at the girl's sudden stop, but shrugs anyways and throws a small knife at her heart, sending her tumbling to the ground. She's looking right at me, her eyes are still open and a slow smile creeps onto her face as her eyes glaze over and blood pours around her. I gasp in terror and turn around in panic, just now realizing that I haven't even stepped off my metal disk.

I can't wrap my mind around it, how these people we've spent days with getting to know can suddenly turn into brutal killing machines. I guess somewhere deep down I knew we weren't going to get into the area and have a tea party but I still had my hopes. I am sprinting now in no particular direction, just trying to find a way to escape. I decide my best bet is to run around the other side of the cornucopia where the careers aren't I pass the mouth and see the tan skinned district 6 boy run a sword through Gemmerson, the 12 year old boy from my district. I shriek and low scream at the sight of the crimson sword being pulled from the child's body. The district 6 boy pulls the sword out coldly and looks up to face me. I start to sprint faster and I can hear the footsteps of the boy behind me and I can tell he's gaining. I don't notice a water bottle lying on the ground in front of me and I trip, falling with a thud to the ground. I don't even get a chance to look up or turn around before I feel the wet sword enter the back of my head.

**Haden Saen **

I don't even hesitate a second before leaping off my podium after the gong. Samantha, Blake, Meg and I made a plan to somehow reconnect after the blood bath but I don't know how we're going to do it now with this area. My best bet is to get something to sustain me and a weapon until I can meet up with them. I hurdle over bags and weapons at the edge of the cornucopia; I have my eye on a curved sword and green backpack at the mouth of the cornucopia. I see Zaylie make the first kill on the left side of the cornucopia and the district 10 girl falls to the ground. At the mouth, I dodge Piston Steel and sweep up the bag and weapon before running quickly to an entrance of the maze. The entrance I'm heading for is currently being blocked by the district 9 tributes that are having a fist fight. I change direction and run into the next one over.

Out of the corner of my eye I see Meg enter the one next to me which brings a wash of relief over me. Surely these paths combine at some point. The maze appears to be made out of limestone or some other chalky material. I'm so busy thinking and taking everything in that I don't notice the quick figure barreling towards me. We slam into each other but I quickly scramble to my feet and draw my sword. I have to laugh as I realize it's only Blake. His tan face is flushed and I can tell he's pretty nervous. He lowers the bow he has pointed at me and punches me in the arm.

"Damn it Haden, you scared the crap out of me!" he says in a relieved manor. I just smile and punch him back, glad to have already found an ally.

"Have you seen Meg and Samantha?" I ask, mainly concerned about Meg . He runs a hand through his blonde hair and I'm expecting him to say something like "yeah I saw them brutally murdered by another tribute." But he doesn't

"Yeah, I saw them both go into a maze entrance together." I'm relieved to know that they are both safe. "What did you pick up from the cornucopia?" He asks me, obviously not worried about their wellbeing. Well if Blake thinks its safe then it probably is. I raise the sword and turn around to show him the back pack. He grins and reveals his bow and arrows and his matching backpack. Out little moment is interrupted by loud pounding footsteps that sound like they are coming our way. Blake and I both spin on our heels and resume running deeper into the maze.

**Samantha Sten **

Meg and I stop and lean against a stone wall to catch our breath. We've been running/walking for what seems like forever but it reality could only be about 45 minutes. We both ran to each other at the cornucopia and I really glad we did, the other 2 members of this alliance are nowhere to be found. I'm glad we decided to be together yesterday at lunch because it made this more so much less stressful. While we break I take a moment to look over our belongings. We both have large backpacks and I have I roll of knives and Meg has a spear. I'm pretty worried about finding the boys in this maze set up but at least we're together. Meg and I start walking again and I think we must be pretty far away from anyone else. I think back to a few minutes ago and everything I saw. I watched the twelve year and fourteen year old murdered before my eyes. I should've helped. I know this is a contest but no one deserves to die like that. Meg and I don't say a word to each other and move in silence down the maze. Meg begins to say something but I quickly cut her off.

"Do you hear that?" I ask her quietly. She looks at me in bewilderment but suddenly an air of recognition creeps across her face.

"Birds." She whispers. I nod and peek around the next turn in the maze, only there's no more maze. The stone walls end and I look out and see a land that seems like paradise. It's a thickly wooded forest that stretches as far as I can see around the maze. I get it now; the arena is set up like concentric circles. The cornucopia and meadow are in the middle, then the maze, and then this wooded area. Meg and I creep slowly into the open, keeping our eyes peeled for any crazed tributes, but none appear. We walk under the cover of the tall trees and look at each other in giddiness. A sudden BOOM causes me to leap a foot up in the air in surprise before I remember that it's only the cannons. I count on my fingers expecting a number like 11 or 13. _2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. 7? ONLY 7?_ Oh my gosh! I can't believe it! Usually the bloodbath results in at LEAST 12 deaths but 7? I don't know what I'm going to do. Meg wears an expression on her face that I'm sure exactly matches mine. I turn back to the maze to see if maybe a bloodthirsty career has been sneaking up on us this entire time but it's clear. I try to get my thoughts off the number of deaths still left to go and instead think about Haden and Blake. At first I was terrified of being with Haden because I thought one day I just woudn't be able to take it anymore and I'd just kiss him! But as I've gotten to know him better he's more like my big brother than my boyfriend. I can also tell that Meg is into him in a boyfriend sort of way. On the other hand, Blake is so perfect. He's charming and kind and is so gentle manly! I think I might be falling for him.


	19. Faceless

_**Hey everyone! WE REACHED 30,000 WORDS!So sorry, this chapter probably has tons of mistakes but I don't have time to check them, have to study! Anyways we are 3 reviews away from 50! Can we do it? What did you think of this chapter? Is there anyone you want more of? What do you think of the alliances so far? Who is your favorite now? Tell me in the reviews, and I love you! ALSO! Credit to TeamAvatar for the creation of the mutt! Thank you!**_

_**Zeke Current**_

"_Shut up!" _I hiss at Zaylie and Ruby. There's something or someone moving in shrubbery against the maze walls and I'm not letting whatever it is get away because they won't shut up. I can almost feel them rolling their eyes at me but I don't hesitate. I raise my choice sword above my head and get ready swing. I'm just about to bring the blade down on whoever or whatever is hiding, but before I can, a dark figure leaps up and springs away. I'm caught off guard so I stop for a moment before sprinting after them. To my surprise the person I'm chasing comes to a complete stop and turns to face me. I start to swing and the person shouts to me.

"STOP! Hear me out!" To my surprise, I stop mid swing and look at the boy curiously. I think I recognize him for district 5, or maybe 6. I narrow my eyes at the boy who looks to be about 17 and looks to be some sort of Hispanic descent. Keeping my blade raised and poised to strike, I raise an eyebrow to invite his explanation. The dark haired boy sighs and begins to explain himself. "My name is Piston, I'm from district 6 and I'd like to join your alliance. I smirk at his request but quickly realize he's serious. I look him up and down and try to remember anything I can about him. I suddenly remember his brutal killing spree in front of the cornucopia and grin. I lower the glinting sword and extend a hand.

"Welcome to the group." The boy's tensed shoulders relax and he seems relieved. Piston may prove to be very useful. I turn around so Ruby, Glare, and Zaylie can get a good glimpse. They all seem fairly pleased with the new addition to the group except Glare, who still seems a bit suspicious. I lead Piston to our camp and show him around. After the bloodbath we cleared to the edge of the meadow to allow to hovercrafts to pick up the bodies and set up our stuff. We left a couple things in the cornucopia but most everything that was left is arranged in a circle under our makeshift shelter. So far no one has ventured into the maze but I can definitely tell Glare is curious.

From the position of the sun, I think that it's around 5 o'clock and the sun is starting to set. That means we've been in the area for about 5 hours. 5 hours, 7 kills, 15 more to go. I don't think Piston picked up anything from the bloodbath because he is currently huddled towards the back of our plastic tent scarfing down some dried fruit and bread which is fine by me. Now that I finally have some time to myself, I begin to explore the perimeters of the meadow. I think the area is set up with the cornucopia in the middle and a maze all around the edge with 24 entrances/exits. If that's the case, then I have no intention of going into the maze, I'm fine right here. Out of the corner of my eye I see Glare waving for me at the edge of an entrance. I casual walk over and ask him what he wants.

"What do you reckon is in the maze?" He asks in a low voice.

"Dunno. Don't care. Don't plan to find out." I reply coldly. He looks at me in surprise but shrugs anyways.

"I think I'm going to go explore." He says with determination in his voice. I shrug like I don't care and he walks into the stone maze without looking back.

_**Blake Daley **_

Exhaustion and fatigue are starting to set in as Haden and I continue through the maze searching for Samantha and Meg. I've learned a lot about Haden these past few hours. For starters, he's only 15, which came as a HUGE shock. I was thinking he was at least 16, maybe even 17, but he's 2 years younger than I am. I guess having the responsibility he did matures a person real fast. I also learn that he had a younger sister that Samantha knew pretty well, he's worried about her. Haden and I haven't stopped moving since the bloodbath and it seems like we've been walking forever. I actually think my feet are starting to swell judging from the tightness of my shoes I'd guess my suspicion is right. For a 15 year old, Haden really can book it. I've been trailing behind him the entire way. I'm at the point where I don't think I can walk anymore and there's no Sam or Meg in sight.

"Can we take a break?" I say finally with a sigh, everything on me is aching. To my relief, Haden smiles and replies to my request quickly.

"I thought you'd never ask." He says with a smile. I slide to the ground against one of the grey walls and start to examine my backpack. I'm happily surprised by a variety of foods, and choose a cheese and cracker packet. I nibble away slowly trying to make it last as long as possible. I know I should save some of the packet but I'm really hungry at this point. Besides, I have plenty of other things left. Still in my pack is a bag of dried fruit and dried snap peas, a few pretzels, a small canister filled with water, and a bag of dried beef jerky. I'm dying to chow down on all the food, but I hold back. Also in the bag is a fleece blanket. I don't bother to look in Haden's pack because it will be the same as mine; in fact, he's eating the same thing I am. It's been a rough day, and we have no way of telling what time it is. Even more disappointing is the fact that there were only 7 deaths. _7. _That leaves 15 left, and one of them could be me. My thoughts are interrupted by a sudden noise. Haden and I both freeze and listen for the sound again. It happens again, this time sounding closer. We both toss our things back into our bags and jump to our feet. I pull a silver bow from my quiver and aim at the wall behind us, Haden follows suit with his sword. It happens again and I'm able to make up what the sound is. It is a low pitched howl, like a wolf. My heart sinks as I realize I may be about to have my first mutt encounter.

I start to edge backwards towards the next corner in the maze as something black and silver creeps from behind the wall in front of me. I only get a moment's glimpse before the creature turns towards Haden and I. I let an arrow fly and turn and start to sprint, Haden at my side. I'm running faster than I ever have in my life but somehow it's not fast enough. I can hear the creature breathing behind us and I can smell its sour breath. I tear by turn after turn and the creature is still hot on our tail. I'm starting to lose my breath at the hot stench of the creature is making me lose it faster. I can't even think at this point, all I'm doing is running for my life. Suddenly, an ear piercing scream causes me to stop dead in my tracks. I'm suddenly aware that Haden is no longer next to me. I whip around, only to see that my new best friend has fallen to the ground.

I stop in fear and watch as the creature takes a swipe at Haden's back leg. He screams in pain and claws and the gravel on the ground in front of him. The attack forces me out of my paralyses and I sprint back towards Haden and the creature. Now that I'm up close I can see that this is no ordinary mutt. Its body has no skin and its wet silvery muscles glint in the light. It also has sharp steel-like tentacles where its arms should be. That's not even the horrifying part, what makes this mutt unique is its lack of face. It has slitty holes where its face should be but besides that, all that's there is a hard shell covering its head. I ignore my panic and pull another bow from my quiver, aim, and fire. The heavy bow hits the mutt right in one of the eye holes and it throws its head back and howls a loud shrieking scream. I take the opportunity and pull Haden to his feet. He almost instantly collapses and I realize the severity of his wound. I pull Haden onto my back and take off down the stone hallway.

As I'm about to round the next bend, a loud thud alerts me to something behind me, I look over my shoulder and see that 3 more of the faceless mutts have seemingly appeared from nowhere and surround the wounded creature. I don't stop to watch the reunion and instead barrel down another stretch of the maze. Adrenaline pumps through my body and I realize the fresh mutts have started after me. I turn the next corner and I'm completely taken by surprise. At the end of the hallway is what appears to be an exit to the maze. I throw everything I have into reaching the end of the hall. I barely make it out when my legs collapse underneath me. In a desperate attempt to protect Haden and Myself, I roll on top of him and wrap my arms around my face preparing myself for brutal pain.

I lie for a few seconds like this before I realize that I'm not actually being mauled to death. I sneak a glimpse behind me and see a curious sight. The faceless mutt is at the entrance of the maze but hasn't gotten out into the wooded/meadow area we're in now. In fact, all three creatures are tearing and what seems to be an invisible wall. Curious, I walk up to the exit of the place and put my hand forward expecting to feel some tough piece of glass, but there isn't anything. I'm confused but I turn my focus to Haden's bloody gash.

_**Dorn Till **_

I'm pretty proud of myself. I went directly into the maze to avoid the bloodbath and quickly found my way out. I think I must've been the first one to make it out because the area was untouched. The arena is arranged in a bulls eye, cornucopia, maze, forest. Immediately upon exiting the maze I found myself in the middle of a field of green, plush grass. A few meters off, the thick forest starts, and that's were I've been ever since. It's starting to get dark and I think we've been in the arena for at least 7 hours. I quickly found myself shelter after entering the forest and that's where I've been ever since. There haven't been any deaths since the bloodbaths, which worries me especially considering the number of deaths during the bloodbaths. It's not night yet so I haven't seen who died but I think I have a pretty good guess.

My achievements so far have been few, actually, one. I managed to climb a tree. Considering my body weight, it's quite a task. I haven't seen any other tributes but there could easily be some others on the other side of the circle. I wait quietly in my perch waiting for another tribute to appear. I'm beginning to regret not getting anything at the cornucopia especially because hunger pangs are starting to set in. I'm just beginning to think about arrangements for the night, when the sound of breaking twigs disturbs my thoughts. I angle my head downwards just in time to see a distraught girl crash into the clearing. She has tears running down her face and she looks totally panicked. She places both hands over her face and begins to cry harder. I promised myself that I wouldn't get myself into any stupid situations, especially any traps, but I can almost feel the girl's pain. With a sigh, I leap down from my low branch and approach the girl. When she sees me, she scoots backwards and her eyes widen. I hold up my hands so she can see that I'm not here to harm her. She doesn't appear to be comforted and instead backs up farther against a tree.

"I'm not going to hurt you." I say in what I hope is a soothing voice. Her expression softens as she quietly replies.

"What do you want?" She asks me, a hint of uneasiness in her voice.

"I just wanted to make sure you were ok." I say truthfully. I extend a hand which she accepts and I pull her to her feet.

"I'm Hailey, you're Dorn, and I recognize you from training. You got an 11." I nod and run a hand through my hair.

"That's me."

"I'm sorry about your district partner." She says sincerely, obviously referring to that weird Crystal girl. I shrug and tell her that I hardly knew Crystal. For the first time I notice that Hailey has a bag. She notices me staring and pulls it open to reveal its contents. I almost gasp as I see she has an assortment of foods, including snap peas. My favorite. She smiles at my surprise and tosses the peas to me. I'm shocked and I toss them back to her, it's too precious of a gift. She hands it back and closes my palm over it.

"Take it; it's a token of gratitude for your help." I frown in confusion because I haven't helped her with anything but she smiles sadly and turns around. For first time, I notice the gash dripping blood from the back of her neck. She extends a hand that with a sewing kit, and I know what she wants me to do.


	20. We're in this together

_**Hey everyone! WHOOHOO! 50 reviews! You guys are awesome! Yeah, I hope you like this chapter, tell me what you think in a review because reviews equal happy megyn and happy megyn equals more chapters and more chapters equals happy readers! So by default reviews equal happy readers. Plus I have a question for you! Who is your favorite tribute now? Thanks for reading!**_

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

I suck my breath in as I feel Dorn threading the string in and out of the wound on my neck. It hurts like nothing I've ever felt before but I haven't let a scream loose yet. The worst part is that after each needle prick, I can feel the string being threaded through my skin. Also, for this to work I needed to be on my stomach, face down, which makes me totally vulnerable but something about Dorn makes me trust him. I bite my lip to keep from whimpering when I suddenly feel something cool on my neck. I arch my back and turn my head to see what's going on.

"Relax," Dorn says calmly, "I'm just washing it off." I can see now that he's just poured a couple drops from my water bottle onto my neck. "All done." He says quietly. I sit straight up which I immediately regret because I feel extremely light headed. Dorn laughs at me and puts his large hands on my shoulders to sturdy me. I reach back and run a hand over my new stiches and cringe when I bring the hand back only to see it covered in warm sticky blood. Dorn winces and tells me that it was a pretty deep cut. "What on Earth happened?" I sigh, not wanting to relive the memory but I feel like I at least owe it to him to tell him what happened.

"When the gong went off, I ran straight for the cornucopia, I thought I could get something and run. I ducked down to get the bag and when I stood up, I was surrounded by three of the careers, both boys and the red headed girl. All of them had swords and they were closing in on me. I thought on my feet and kicked one of the boy's legs out from underneath him. I thought I could escape then but the redhead ran at me so I ducked. She brought her sword down on my neck before I could escape. The blood was running down my shoulder but I knew if I stopped she'd kill me, so I ran tot eh maze. After a few uneventful hours I emerged into this area and found you in under a few seconds." He seems impressed, but he shouldn't be. The real Hailey could never do something like that, that was all scared Hailey. "At first I was confused because I thought they would want me in their group because I'm from four but I guess I didn't make the cut." I say with a sigh. Dorn gives me a sympathetic smile as he stands up.

"Were going to need to find water if we want that cut to heal right." He says.

"We?" I ask confused, "So this isn't just a onetime thing?" Dorn shrugs and puts his hands in his pockets.

"I guess we're in this together now." He says with a wink. I almost throw up my hands and start bouncing up and down on the spot. I, Hailey Gracefield, just might make it home.

_**Ruby Jenkins**_

"I'm _tired!" _I whine hoping someone will listen and agree that it's time to go back to camp. "Its like, 2 in the morning! Why are we traipsing through the maze instead of oh I don't know…_sleeping!"_ Zeke nods in agreement but Glare keeps marching forward. He wanted to go in the maze so bad, and after Zeke and Zaylie agreed to go too, there was no way I was staying at that camp by myself with Piston. We've been walking for at least 45 minutes and we haven't found anything useful or interesting.

"Yeah man…maybe we should head back..." Zeke says hopefully, with an air of exhaustion in his voice." Glare turns around and furrows his eyebrows at us.

"Obviously there's something useful in here or the other tributes would've come back to the cornucopia by now." He doesn't stop walking, in fact, he starts to jog. I roll my eyes and shrug towards Zeke and adopt to the new pace. We continue this way for what must be another 30 minutes before Glare comes to a stop in front of us. I almost bump into him because I'm too busy looking at the strange glowing markings that have appeared on the wall. They're written in some language that I don't know that looks like tiny hieroglyphics. I'm confused when Glare turns around with an expression of fear on his face, one I'm not sure I've seen before. He starts pushing me backwards and raises a finger to his lips, I don't see it in time before I ask another question.

"_Where _are we going?" I say exasperatedly, putting my hands on my hips. Glare looks furious and clamps his sweaty hand over my mouth. I squirm against him as he drags me backwards and all the others trail behind us. I'm about dig my teeth into his hand when something stops me. In the corner of the maze we were about to turn around a black figure is shaking. I stop fighting Glare and let him quietly edge us backwards. We're about to disappear around the next corner when the creature whips its head around and I get a good look at it for the first time.

It's not like an animal I've seen so it must be a mutt. It reminds of something we learned about in school that old world people used to have called a Minotaur. Except this one looks much more vicious than one I've ever seen before. It has large, ram like horns protruding from its bony skull, it has razor sharp teeth and a HUGE muscular human like body that is covered in hair. The strangest part is its glowing red eyes. I can't help it at this point; I've bitten down on Glare and am scrambling in the opposite direction trying to get away. Glare swears and he Zeke and Zaylie quickly follow me. I know the creature is chasing us by the loud vibrations the ground is making. I'm so panicked, I don't remember where to go or where we came in and Glare doesn't appear to either. The monster is gaining on us and I'm worried that it's going to catch us, so I do the only thing I can think of to keep myself safe, I shove Zeke backwards towards the Minotaur. Zeke screams loudly as he falls to the ground, I don't look back to see what's going to happen next but I know it wasn't good for Zeke by the cannon shot that booms loudly second later. Glare looks angry as we continue on trying to get out of the maze. Zeke must've not been a very appetizing snack because the creature is on our tail again and is gaining.

Something slams into my from behind and I find myself pinned to the wall by the Minotaur. Glare and Zaylie stop in their tracks and watch as the monster pushes on me harder. I scream from eh pressure it's putting on my shoulder and yell and them to help me. I'm almost certain my shoulder is about to fracture when suddenly it's the Minotaur that's screaming and has released me from its death grip. I look to my right to see that Piston has just thrown a sharp hammer right into the Minotaur's eye. I hop over the writhing creature and continue sprinting before it gets up and starts to chase us again. I only round a few more corners before I catch a glimpse of our camp and fire. Once out of the maze I collapse and fall to the ground, my heart beating quickly in my chest. I roll over so I'm looking upwards and come face to face with Piston.

"Thanks." I breathe coolly, as though his help weren't necessary . Piston opens his mouth but doesn't even get a word out before something throws him to the side and suddenly Glare is In my face.

"What the HELL were you thinking!" He screams into my face loudly.

"You should be _thanking _me," I say coldly, "if I hadn't pushed him into the minotaur that could've been you." Glare rolls his eyes and walks over to the stone wall and slams his fist into it.

"NOW THERE'S ONLY 3 OF US!" I shrug and try to walk away from this useless debate. He continues shouting at me but I'm not listening anymore. 8 down, 14 to go.

_**Robbie Godder **_

I haven't slept at all this entire night. Demetria and I didn't find each other and now I have no idea where she is. For all I know, she doesn't want to be found. A loud cannon shot booms in the distance and I almost drop the piece of dried fruit I'm nibbling off. I know she didn't die in the bloodbath thanks to the capitol video earlier in the night. Crystal, Clio, Gemmerson, Kaelp, Laurel, one district nine tribute, and Carson are dead. I'm glad Demetria's safe but for all I know, that could have been her canon. I'm just getting back to my dried banana wafer when I hear a crashing noise coming from the bushes in front of me. I stop moving so that the bush I'm hiding in can adequately cover me as two boys come into sight. I think they are from 8 and 11 but I can't be sure. I sit very still so I can listen to their conversation. The brunette one appears to have some sort of leg injury because the other one who I think is from 8 is helping him walk.

"Where could they be?" 8 asks impatiently as the other boy winces at the pain in his obvious leg injury.

"Dunno," He says gritting his teeth, "but they can't be far, I mean, we went into maze entrances right next to each other and there's no way they haven't found their way out yet. The blonde nods and continues helping him walk.

"Maybe we should stop; all this walking can't be good for your leg." The 11 boy waves the offer away and they continue limping away from me. I wait for a few moments after I can't hear them before getting up. I'm desperate to find Demetria and I can't think of a better time to do it than under the curtain of night. I swing the small backpack I found at the cornucopia over my back and begin walking in the opposite direction of the boys. After about 20 minutes of walking I decide it's no use because I'm too tired anyways. I look around for a good hiding spot when something catches me eye. Under a tree to the left of me the roots are making a little underground hole that I think would be perfect to hide in. I toss my pack into it and slide in. I'm just getting settled when my foot hits something warm and soft…like a leg. My eyes shoot open and I find myself looking directly and Demetria.


	21. Every Breath

_**OK guys sorry this chapter is short but I already updated today so…yeah. I just wanted there to be a little more stuff on each of the characters! I hope you like it! Ps you should review **_

_**Demetria Greene **_

"You found me!" I cry as I wrap my arms around Robbie's neck. I feel Robbie release a shaky breath on my neck and I pull back to see what's wrong. He's really white and when he licks his lips, they don't get wet.

"You're thirsty." I say not waiting for a reply before turning to my backpack and pulling out a full water bottle and handing it to him. As I turn around, I'm caught completely off guard, before I know what's happening, Robbie's face is next to mine and I can feel his breath on his face. I'm about to raise the water bottle between us but Robbie leans in farther and before I have a chance to react, we're kissing. I'm not like most people who say things like I forget where I am, or I stop thinking. My mind is racing a mile a minute and I can't _stop _thinking. Am I doing this right? Where does my tongue go? Something inside tells me to shut up and just enjoy the moment, so I do. Robbie and I are both sitting cross legged and are leaning into each other, I wrap my arms around his neck and I feel him do the same. We sit like this for what seems like only a few seconds before pulling apart. I look right into his enchanting green eyes and I hear him say the words I never thought I'd hear him say.

"I love you." I stop for a moment. I've never really thought about Robbie like that, he's been like my silly brother who's always there for me, but now that were here and I understand the severity of our situation. I realize that I feel the same. The way the thought of losing him to these games tears me apart on the inside makes me realize it.

"I love you too." I hug him again before lying down next to each other and trying to get some sleep. I put my face on his chest, desperate to hear each and every breath he takes. For the first time in my life, I admit to myself that I love Robbie, and he loves me.

_**Trixxie Finnegan **_

I'll bet I'm the only one who has it figured out. The mysterious maze monsters are actually timed. The maze is empty from 3 am to 4 pm but at 5, the monsters are released. 5-9 is the faceless, 9-12 is a cheetah/wolf mutt, and 12-3 is the Minotaurs. It's really not that complicated but I'm almost sure I'm the only person who's figured it out. I also happen to know where everyone at what their relationships are.

The typical careers are still chilling by the cornucopia, Meg and Samantha are together looking for Blake and Haden who are actually looking for them too. Hailey and Dorn have an alliance as do Demetria and Robbie. That only leaves one district nine tribute whom I believe is wandering through the maze still. It's weird that this year the arena is riddled with alliances, in fact, it's only me and the 9 boy who aren't in an alliance. Whatever, it's probably very interesting. In fact, I probably haven't been featured at all. That's fine with me besides, it's not like I've done anything interesting anyways. It didn't take me long to find my way out of the maze and I've been sitting in an oak tree ever since.

I've just started to let my mind wander when I see a movement from the far end of the maze. Its early in the morning, like 4 o clock, so I can't quite see well enough to tell who it is, but it's a group of 4 people. I assume it's the careers and I'm right. As they near my tree I can tell something is off. The district 2 boy is gone and he's been replaced by Piston steel. Well that's a twist I think to myself. The careers look extremely tired, and in the case of Glare, angry. The Ruby girl is talking rather loudly and is totally giving away their position. She's blabbering on about something that I can't quite hear because they're walking farther away now. It's quite obvious that they just figured out that the forest is on the other side of the maze by their expressions. I smirk and settle back into the sleeping bag nest I created for myself when I first arrived. I force myself to stop thinking and drift off to sleep.

_**Meg Saiden **_

I can barely keep my eyes open. Sam and I have been taking turns sleeping all night and I'm keeping watch right now. I'm so tired I can hardly see straight but Sam let me sleep most of the night without waking me up to guard so I kind of owe her. We're sleeping at the base of a large tree surrounded in tall grass so I'm not too worried about having to fight off savage tributes. I wait another hour or so before waking Samantha up, we need to keep looking if we want to find Blake and Haden anytime soon. She wakes up with a smile on her face and thanks me for watching. We gather our things and begin walking again. We're about to pass into a clearing when suddenly I hear voices.

"_DUCK!" _I whisper yell to Samantha and we both lower to the ground and watch for the source of the voice.

"I _TOLD _you there would be something good if we went through the maze again!" I hear Glare Zenton say. I raise my eyes in time to catch Ruby roll hers as she follows behind him.

"Whatever, if we had just waited an hour and come later, Zeke wouldn't be dead right now!" She says accusingly. Glare whips around and I'm expecting him to hit her but instead he growls something that sure wipes the snotty look off her face. I wait for them to pass before standing up with Sam and continuing to look for Blake and Haden.

"Maybe we should go deeper into the forest?" suggests Samantha. I nod and change my direction to follow her. We walk this way for a little while longer. I'm about to ask for a break when something distracts me.

"Do you hear that?" I ask quietly. Sam nods and we both push away a bush in front of us. My jaw drops as I realize what I'm looking at.

"Water." Sam breathes with a hint of disbelief in her voice. We walk to the shore of the medium sized pond and I dip a finger in. My finger doesn't burn off or anything so I assume its safe and start to drink. Samantha too lowers are head and starts taking deep gulps. I'm wiping my mouth on the back of my hand when a voice startles me.

"Well well, look who we have here!" I whip around, terrified that I'll find myself at knife point. Instead, a smile forms on my face as I see Blake and Haden for the first time in the arena.


	22. Shadows

_**Ok, I just wanted to start out with a quick note. Today I figured out how to see how many people have looked/clicked on my story. I was totally BLOWN away! Take a guess! 2,374 people! I know that not all 2,374 people even read this or clicked on it on purpose, but it makes me so happy! Weather you leave me reviews or not, people are actually reading this! Its funny to think that me, Megyn, could somehow attract 2,000 people to my story! I love you all, even if you don't leave reviews and I don't know you're reading this…thanks! I feel just horrible about what I had to do in this chapter, but I have to make stuff happen! Thanks everyone and please leave a review if you read this!**_

_**Samantha Sten **_

I almost drop the steel water bottle I'm holding when I catch sight of Haden and Blake. They're both smiling. They're both ok. They're still alive. I'm so overwhelmed and excited that I start sprinting towards Blake. Even though I've only known him for 2 weeks, he's really become the anchor that keeps me going. Being without him really made me realize how much I like him. As I draw nearer to him, he begins to smile and drops the back pack and bow he was holding as I leap into his arms. I can feel his muscular arms tighten around my back as I wrap my toned legs around his torso. I can see Meg and Haden hugging out of the corner of my eye as I come face to face with Blake.

"I was worried about you." I breathe, tucking a strand of loose brown hair behind my head. He smiles the same warm smile that makes missing him so hard. It's so strange, because 3 weeks ago, I would've said I couldn't imagine ever liking anyone but Haden. I guess things really do change in the blink of an eye. I don't know how I fell so hard or so fast, all I know is I'm consumed by this crazy reckless love. I want nothing more than to stay this way forever, wrapped in each other's arms and breathing in the sweet scent of meadow grass and his blonde hair, but we can't. Blake releases his tight squeeze and I slide back down to the ground. Meg and Haden are a few yards in front of us, walking towards a tree on the edge of the deep pond holding hands. We all walk to a tree about 50 feet from the pond hidden by other trees and set up a makeshift camp. Meg and I find out about the boy's experience in the maze and how they've been looking for us. They refer to the creature from the maze "The Faceless" and just hearing about it sends shivers down my spine. We set out all our things from our packs and discover that we have several blankets, a choice weapon for everyone, food, and water. I can't imagine things turning out any better.

We spend the rest of the day sharing our experiences and exploring our new territory which seems to be tributeless. At night fall, we stomp out our fire and get settled for bed. We decide to sleep in pairs to keep ourselves warm. Meg and I share a bottom and top blanket as do Haden and Blake. I feel myself about to drop off into a deep sleep when a tap on my shoulder startles me. I rise quietly and turn around. Blake is behind me, smiling and urging me to come with him. I sweep my loose hair into a ponytail and follow him quickly. He darts through the woods back to the large pond and stops on the edge. I come huffing to a stop and put my hands on my hips.

"Ok, I'm up but what do you want." I growl at him. He smiles mischievously and he starts to take off his heavy jacket. I realize after a few seconds that he's taking his clothes off! I'm feeling faint and I'm worried I might pass out but instead I just turn around, embarrassed. All of the sudden there is a loud splash behind me and I realize what's going on, Blake wants to go swimming. I almost laugh at my stupidity as his smiling face emerges from the silvery water. He watches me expectantly but replace my hands on my hips. He looks confused at first but a look of understanding flashes across his face and he turns around. I pull off the heavy jeans and top until I'm only wearing the black under tank top and spandex. I take a running leap off the rocky edge and dive into the clear water. I stay under for a moment and relish in the silence the glass like water provides. When I surface, Blake is waiting for me. We swim to where we can both stand and he looks right at me.

" I think I like you.." he says quietly suddenly shy. I beam back at him and giggle.

"I think I like you too." Time stands still for a moment and we both lean into each other. I almost melt on the spot when I feel Blake's warm lips meet mine. Nothing else in the world matters. I wrap my arms and legs around him. We stay like this for a few moments before breaking apart. I'm looking into his blue eyes fondly when something startles me.

_BOOM _

_**Demetria Greene **_

I can hear the birds chirping signaling for me to awake up. I sit up as much as the small root cave will allow me to. I rub my eyes and look over at Robbie who is already awake. He smiles when he sees me. I grin back and pull my leather jacket back on. I poke my back out of the branch enclosure to make sure the coast is clear. I see that it is and pull myself up and out, Robbie quickly follows suit. Once out we decide to find a new hiding spot, out hole is sure to attract attention. We join hands as we walk and talk about our experiences apart. I really like the haircut the stylists gave to Robbie's red hair and I can't stop looking at it. After an hour or so of walking, we come upon the maze walls. We stop short at the entrance and Robbie turns to me.

"What should we do know?" I ask confused. He shrugs.

"I dunno, maybe we should walk around the wall some more to see what's going on on the other side." I nod and we set off. WE only have to walk about 20 minutes before something stops me short. Robbie is in the middle of saying something about the bloodbath when I cover his mouth and push him against the wall. He looks confused but understands when I point and gesture towards the career camp. I unclamp my hand and we begin to tip toe away. We're almost out of sight when I feel a twig crack underneath my foot. _Shoot. _I see the brunette from 2 whip her head around and she makes direct eye contact with me immediately. She says something I can't make out and all the others turn towards us and stand up.

** "GO!" **I scream at Robbie and we take off. WE head back to the cover of the woods and run through the thick forest as quickly as possible. Snapping and yelling behind us tells me that the careers are on our tails. I turn back and I'm caught off guard. The district 6 boy is with them now and he looks just as vicious as the rest of them. When I turn back around to keep running, Robbie is gone. Suddenly I trip to the ground and something pulls me to the side. Its Robbie, who is pulling me behind a mini forest of thick bamboo. He raises a finger to his lips but what the careers say next sends a shiver down my spine.

"We know you're there Robbie." I look at Robbie, confused. They surely must've seen me too but I guess not. They don't know I'm here. The footsteps come closer and this time another female voice speaks.

"Come out, or we'll come get you." My face pales and I look at Robbie. My mind is working a mile a minute but it still can't seem to come up with a way to outthink this situation. Another step. Tears start to spill over and I know that I'm about to die a slow and horrible death. I look at my bestfriend one last time and kiss him softly. He quickly pulls away and kisses my forehead.

"I love you Demetria Greene. Don't you forget it." Before I know whats happening, Robbie has scuttled from my grasp out to the careers. I stifle a gasp as I watch Robbie and the career's shadows mingling. Robbie is surrounded by 4 of them. _What do I do? _I hear them talking but I can't quite make it out through the bamboo. I don't know whether to jump out and surprise attack or wait, so I sit, frozen in terror. I watch in figure as one of the boy figures raises what appears to be a sword above his head. _MOVE! _My brain screams at me but I'm stuck, paralyzed with fear. So I sit there and watch helplessly as shadow career slits shadow Robbie's throat and he falls to the ground with a horrifying thud.


	23. Everything's Alright

_**6 reviews in one day? You guys are awesome! Just the other day I was dying to get to 50 reviews and now we're at 62? You guys are amazing! I hope you enjoy this chapter and as always, thanks for reading! Oh and there was someconfusion about what the canon was in Sam's POV and to clear that up its Robbie's, I just didn't show that part in the last chapter! Sorry this chapter is short, I just wanted to let you guys know what was goin on with your tributes!**_

_**Dorn Till **_

I don't want to watch, but I can't look away. Hailey clings to me as we watch the scene unravel from a branch high above. I watch in horror as the boy career from 1 runs a crudely shaped sword along Robbie's neck. The red headed boy falls to the ground with a thump and the careers quickly run back where they came from. _He saved her. _If the boy hadn't revealed himself the careers would've come around the corner and seen that the girl was with him too. The careers disappear from view and the concealed girl sprints to the boy before collapsing next to him. She tears at her hair and screams an animalistic scream and starts to sob.

"ROBBIE! ROBBIE? ROBBIE _PLEASE!_" She screams and yells for help as large tears stream down her pale face. I feel awful. I should go down there, console the girl. But I don't. I can't put myself in danger like that especially with the girl giving away our exact location. Hailey holds onto me tighter as the 12 girl weeps and kisses the boy, begging him to live. She's being so loud, I almost miss the canon. "_NO! NO! NO!" _She stands up and screams, completely distraught and hysterical. She puts her hands over her face and collapses to the ground in a rumpled heap. I can feel my shirt getting wet where Hailey's face is and I know she feels just as bad for the girl as I do. "Help me," she whispers hysterically, "I have no one." My heart breaks in half for this girl whose name I don't even know, for this girl who lost the only thing she cared about. Still sobbing, she closes the boy's eyes and pulls his jacket up so the bloody wound is no longer visible. She kisses him one last time before retreating to avoid being caught. I look at Hailey and see that she is just as distressed as the girl was. I knew that I would see people die in these games, but nothing like that. I hold a crying Hailey closer to me and run my hand through her long brown hair.

"There there," I say quietly trying to calm her, "it's alright; everything is going to be just fine." But the truth is, I have no idea.

_**Whitley Hedge **_

_Snap snap. _I quietly turn my head to the right to try to see where the noise is coming from. For a few moments, nothing appears, but then a dark figure appears. I'm not certain about who it is but I think it might be the 6 boy Piston. I'm surprised because I've seen him with the careers but maybe they've had a falling out. I watch as he sits down on a rock and puts his head in his lap. I furrow my brow in confusion and watch as he starts to cry. I strain my ears because now I can hear him whispering.

"I didn't want this to happen, I didn't want him to die, I didn't want to kill people." He says in a low whisper while rocking back and forth. Shocked doesn't even begin to describe how I feel. This is the first sign of vulnerability I've seen in this arena and I'm almost thankful. I haven't talked to anyone for the 4 days we've been here and I'm starting to go crazy! It's nice to finally hear someone else's voice besides my own. I stop moving as I hear more footsteps coming from the direction Piston came from and I know I'm right about the careers because they're right behind him. The boy wipes the tears from his eyes and the careers come into view. I try to stay as still as possible as they meet up. They share a laugh over their new kill and begin to move on when something makes my heart drop. Piston turns around and looks directly at me, right into my eyes. This is it. It's only a matter of seconds before they're on me and I'm dead, but that's when something weird happens. He nods and me and turns back around. I dare to release the breath I've been holding in and I'm confused. He gave me a second chance. Maybe this is his way of making up for helping kill the boy, I don't care. All I know is I'm still alive and the boy let me live.


	24. Into the Light

_**Heyyyyy guys, I hope you like this chapter! Please PLEASE reviewwww!**_

_**Demetria Greene **_

I feel empty. Hollow. Life is no longer worth living. I'm not worth anything. Its been a day since I watched the only person I cared about die in front of me. One day since I watched him take his last breath. One day since I lost everything. I'm so upset, I barely even know where I am. I'm vaguely aware of the tickle of branches on my cheek so I must be in some sort of bush. Maybe it's the same bush I hid in when Robbie first died, I don't remember. This doesn't seem real, all the times I watched the hunger games from the comforts of my own home I never imagined the pain and damage actually being in the games caused. I watched brother kill sister and friend kill friend, but I really had no concept of what it was like. I understand now. Loss is devastating and I don't know how I'm going to manage. I've lost all desire to return home or to even live. Maybe I'm just a waste of space. How do you come back from something like this? I guess you don't.

I try to reposition myself only to discover my once strong and powerful legs have turned to jello. The fact that I don't even have control over my own body sends a shiver down my spine. I massage my legs for a moment before attempting to stand again, but I still have to support myself with bulky tree trunk. I decide that I really must've been sitting like that since Robbie's death because my legs hardly work. I wander aimlessly for a few minutes before deciding what to do. I'm going straight to the careers, I want this to end. I almost turn back a few times before reaching them, not because I am scared, but because I am uncertain. Will it hurt? Will I cry? Can I be brave? The thought of seeing Robbie again pushes the doubtful thoughts from my mind and propels me closer faster. My heart flutters when I catch my first sight of the careers. None of them seem affected by the murder they just committed. In fact, the only emotion I read is boredom. The realization causes tears to well in my eyes. I quickly wipe the watery drops away, I want to do this with pride. With a deep breath, I step into sight of the careers.

It doesn't take long for them to notice me and they come sprinting. There's no need I think almost amused, I'm not going anywhere. The smaller district 2 girl tackles me and I feel an immediate headache come on as my head slams to the ground. I let a small moan escape my lips but nothing more; they will not have the satisfaction of knowing the scare me. They argue above me but I don't listen, I don't care, as long as I die I wish for nothing more. I know they are talking about me because the redhead keeps gesturing towards me and making stabbing motions. A smile tugs at my mouth as I fold my hands in my lap and wait for the end to come. I watch curiously as the district 1 boy pushes the girl out of the way and grabs a sword. He comes to me quickly and quietly almost like a shark tracking prey. I watch as he raises the sword and angles it down towards my head. I look past him into the sun and watch as a majestic eagle crosses its fiery path. I close my eyes for the last time as the boy lowers his sword.

It hurts for a moment. Almost like someone ran a tiny train through my skull I think to myself. The blackness my shut eyelids provide soon lightens and the pain in my head is undetectable. Confused, I open my eyes and raise a hand to my forehead where I should find a gaping wound, instead, I feel nothing. Befuddled, I sit up and look around when something almost causes me to fall back to the ground, Robbie. I push myself off the ground and begin to sprint towards him. His arms open and I fall into his warm embrace. I can feel his hand on the back of my hair as he strokes my black tresses.

"Where am I?" I breathe in awe of the bright place we stand in. He only smiles and laces his hand in mine and tugs me towards a soft glowing golden light. I smile back and walk with the only boy I've ever loved into the light.

_**Orion Northcliff **_

Stupid careers. While those blundering idiots are off killing maybe one tribute a day I'm back at their camp helping myself to their precious supplies. I grin and toss an apple in my hand trying to get a feel for it before taking a bite. The sweet fruit explodes in my mouth in a rush of sweet liquid causes me to smile. The sticky juice runs down my chin as I take another bite and continue exploring their stores. I grab a hunk of cheese, some dried beef, a knife, a chunk of bread, and some more arrows for my bow. I don't dare take any more in case something was to happen to the pack I'm carrying. I've been hiding just inside the entrance of the maze so I can see what's going on by the cornucopia, which so far happens to be nothing. For the first night the careers stayed nearby but by the second curiosity lured them into the stone walls of the maze. I casually return to my little hideout and keep my eyes peeled for approaching tributes.

There are fourteen tributes left, the 12 boy died yesterday and the girl was killed earlier today. So far the only surprise has been the death of the 2 boy in the wee hours of the morning the second night, I suppose there might be something in the maze to worry about. All the more reason to stay here. There's still some pretty tough competition left. I'm almost certain that district 8 and 10 are paired up and they all had high training scores which could be dangerous. On the other hand, the careers are weaker, assuming that they haven't picked up any followers. Its dark now and I decide it would be best to try to get some sleep so I snuggle into a sleeping bag I already stole and close my eyes for the night.

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

Nothing can soothe me. I knew there would be death in the hunger games but I never expected to become so emotionally attached to people who want my dead. The lack of humanity in Robbie's death scared me and made me angry at the same time. How could these kids decide to end a life like that? That boy was someone's son, someone's friend, and someone's only hope. The thoughts taste bitter in my mouth and I want nothing more to console the Demetria girl and tell her it will be alright but I have no idea where she is. Dorn has insited that its time to remove my stiches so we're traveling to a nearby stream for fresh water to cleanse the cut. Neither of us speak as we walk, neither of us need to. I know the horrific murder took a toll on both of us and there's no need to and salt to the wound.

I hear the stream before I see it. The cool water drizzles over the smoth river rocks on its way downhill. I stop to take a quick sip before Dorn has me lie down so he can see the area. I lay my neck over his thigh and bite on my shirt as he pulls the string from my neck. Its painful but makes me more dizzy than hurt. Once he's done he sprinkles the cool water over the cut and has me sit up.

"Its red but I don't think its infected." He says slowly and I nod in understanding. My hand travels to my neck where I am surprised not to feel a bloody wound, just a scratch. Dorn sighs as he buries the waste and covers it with a generous layer of earthy soil. I watch his brow crease in thought and I can't help but laugh. He looks so serious when he's thinking. Dorn smiles at me and wipes his hands on his brown jacket and opens his mouth like he might something. He stutters a little but eventually gets it out.

"Why did you pick me?" He asks nervously, shoving his large hands into his pockets. I stifle a grin as I reply.

"because you remind me of my dad." Dorn looks offended to be compared to an old man but I explain to him why it's a compliment. Dorn wraps me in a hug as tears spill over as I recount my father's death and tries to quiet me.

"Would you like to know why I chose you?" He asks me. I nod subtly and me exhales before he replies. "Because you remind me of your sister. " He can't see it because my face is buried in his jacket, but I smile. I hug Dorn closer and whisper a thank you to him.

"Thank you for choosing me."


	25. Where We Are

_**Hey guys….again lol! So one quick update before I get into it, that was a total typo that last chapter, Dorn was supposed to say "You remind me of MY sister" whoops! Anyways, enjoy and um….you should leave me a review….! Also one other thing is I know sometimes I kind of skip around sometimes with the POVs and it can be confusing with who is doing what when and what not so if you're confused leave it in the reviews and I'll either message you or write a quick note about it in the next chapter's intro! Oh and PS : there's another bad word in this chapter so yea…I warned you.**_

_**Samantha Sten **_

I wake with a start as memories of my night flood back to my mind. A smile tugs at the corners of my light pink lips and I open my eyes with a grin. I lay quietly before turning over to see if I can hear if anyone else is awake. Hearing nothing, I roll to the other side and prop myself up on elbows. At first I think I'm alone but then I notice that Haden is awake. He is leaning with his knees pulled up to his chest against a nearby tree. I slowly peel myself out of the makeshift bed I share with Meg and tiptoe across her and Blake so as not to wake them. I take a seat next to the brunette boy and wait for him to lift his eyes. His normally seafoamy green eyes appear dull and stormy as he raises them to meet mine. I'm not sure but I think I see a flash of emotion surge across his face as he sees me. I think he's upset. I scrunch my nose in confusion at his unsettled expression as he sighs and runs a hand through his messy brown hair seeming to understand my desire to understand what is happening.

"I know you're confused, I just….I don't know. I miss my sister a lot and I'm worried for all of you and I…I think there might be something between Meg and I but at the same time, only two can win and…" He doesn't finish the sentence and instead grunts in frustration and instead crushes a handful of dead leaves in his hand. "I dunno….I just didn't expect it to be this hard." I nod in agreement and turn my attention to my torn cuticles. As much as I'm sure I want Blake sometimes it's hard to just ignore Haden and the feelings I used to have for him. I bite my nails and wait for him to say something but I realize he isn't going to. Not knowing what to say, I resort to physical comfort and rest my head on one of his broad shoulders. I can hear his heart beat in sync with mine as we sit this way for several moments. A sudden rustling to my right tells me that Blake is awake so I give Haden an awkward pat on the back and walk over to Blake.

I lean down close to his face and brush my lips against his softly so as not to startle him. His eyes gently flutter open and he greets me with a dazzling white smile. The soft kisses are sweet and gentle, they make me not want to stop and I know he doesn't either. Despite this, I pull away and walk over to Meg to wake her but I see that she is awake, just laying down still. Everyone slowly wakes up and we join in a girl scout-esque circle in the middle of our beds and eat a petit breakfast. I'm intently listening to a conversation about fabrics that Meg and Blake are engaging in when something alerts me.

"_shhhh!" _ I hiss under my breath and listen closely in the direction I just heard a noise from. Sure enough, I hear another twig snap and my suspicions of a tribute are confirmed. I raise a thin finger to my lips and snake a heavy serrated knife from my bag because my spear is too far away. Blake immeaidatly understands what I'm doing and follows my lead by removing a similar knife from his bag. Meg and Haden both sit and continue talking so as not alert the eavesdropper. Blake stands up with me and I pretend that I have to go to the bathroom and he offers to come with me. I inch backwards slowly while starting a countdown from three on a hand in front of my chest where it is out of sight to my attacker. At one, I spin on my heels and dart into the forest, Blake right behind me. The dark figure darts through the trees like they've been doing it since they were a child. We come into a clearing and I finally catch a glimpse of the intruder. It's Piston Steel. I sprint harder until I'm almost at him, stop, and throw the knife in the direction of the boy's shoulder blade. I stop in disbelief as the shining knife completely misses the target and sails into a nearby tree. The boy escapes through the thick forest and Blake comes to a halt next to me, still panting. I angrily stride up to the tree and rip the knife from its wooden clutch.

_"Shit_!" I say violently as I let the steel knife clatter to the soft forest floor. "He was right there!" I exclaim in disbelief. I almost never miss. Blake wraps a reassuring arm around my shoulder and rubs his thumb in a circular motion.

"Its ok," he says soothingly, "at least he didn't try to hurt us." I sigh and realize he's right. I don't know, I kind of just wanted to be down a tribute. Blake and I walk slowly back to camp, neither of us mentioning our little adventure last night. Back at camp, both Meg and Haden are disappointed to know that the boy got away, but finding him revealed a very important piece of information. Someone knows where we are.

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

"Well?" I say tapping my foot briskly at the panting boy in front of me. "Did you find them?" He glares at me puts his hands on his knees before answering my question.

"Yes." He says quietly. I grin with excitement and call to Glare and Zaylie to tell them the news. Neither seem as pleased as I am but maybe them don't quite understand. Finding them means that all we have to do is kill them and just like that, 4 tributes are gone. Piston is still catching his breath as I stride back to our tent and grab my backpack full of weapons. Zaylie and Glare look confused but I just motion for them to fool as I head into the woods. Piston leads us slowly back down the path he came from and in and out of the tree obstacles. The journey takes at least a half hour before I start to hear voices. The conversation becomes understandable as we get closer and closer to the break in the trees. The tall brunette girl is saying something to the blonde boy about a certain knife having a strange weight in it but the conversation makes no difference to me. The boy and the girl venture off toward Zaylie and Glare look confused but Piston catches on right away. It would be foolish to strike now because it would be one vs one but at night we have the offensive advantage. And so we wait.


	26. I'll Never Know

_**I don't want to say much in this intro, just please please review! I hope you like it. **_

_**Haden Saen **_

We're moving again. Thanks to that idiot Piston, we know the careers know where we are. We abandoned our old camp and moved across the pond to a different location. Satisfied, Blake drops his back pack and begins to build a fire. Its only 5 o'clock so the smoke won't give us away. I put my hands in my pockets and lean against a birch tree avoiding joining the conversation. Ever since I talked to Samantha I feel vulnerable, a feeling I'm not used to. I try to avoid making eye contact, even with Meg. When her eyes finally find mine, the light is gone from them and they seem smoky. I know she's confused at my sudden withdrawal but I don't feel the urge to explain myself.

I remain silent through diner and instead focus my attention on any approaching tributes. After yet another bland meal, Sam asks Blake to help her with a certain knife. She's been getting really frustrated with this particular knife because she can't throw it. As kind and outgoing as she is, the girl can't stand to be bad at something. I watch them for a while before growing bored and becoming fidgety. I decide to go for a quiet walk by the water to help calm myself. I step carefully on the sharp rocks as I lap the crystal pool a few times. I thought having space to think would do me good, but there's nothing really to think about. I'm lost, confused, grief-striken, lonely, angry. I am so many different things I'm not sure the old Haden is underneath it all. I can hear footsteps behind me and I don't even have to look to know that's its Meg. I am irritated that she followed me here because I obviously wanted to be alone but I push the rude thoughts from my mind and greet her with a smile.

She wraps her thin arms around me and leans into my chest. Even though she's older than I am, I feel like we are exactly the same. I don't touch her hair like I've seen Blake do with Samantha, instead, I stand. I close my eyes and rest my head on her shoulder and wait for her to say something. But she doesn't and I don't have a problem with it. The subtle waves in the pond wash over my toes gently, calming some of my thoughts and allowing me to focus on the moment. She leans back to face me and I fake a smile. Something I've gotten rather good at lately. She opens her pale lips to say something when a noise stops us dead in our tracks. There's a loud crunching noise behind me and I don't bother to turn around before sprint full speed back to camp. Meg has had the same idea. I trail behind her as we sprint desperately back to the safety of weapons and Sam and Blake.

We crash loudly through the bushes into camp screaming our heads off to warn Sam and Blake. Sam looks confused at first but I watch as her eyes widen in fear and she tears her knife from a nearby tree. I figure I must be fairly far ahead so I turn around to see who we're facing. Its fairly dark now and I'm having trouble seeing the faces of our pursuers, but I don't need to. I know it's the careers. I have just enough time to wrench a sword from the ground before something heavy slams me to the ground. I howl angrily and swipe my sword's sharp blade across the back of my attacker. The large boy screams in pain and frustration and I'm able to shove him off of me. I stand up and quickly observe the scene before deciding what to do. I see a boy and girl figure standing in the center of the fight and I see the district 2 girl holding a particularly grim knife above Blake's head. I raise my sword and prepare to fight her, but without a moment's hesitation Sam sends a gleaming knife into the girls heart. The small but strong girl slumps to the ground with the knife still embedded in her chest. A flash of regret fills me just like every other time I've seen someone die in the games. Sam is helping the knife-wounded Blake up so I turn my attention to the 2 figures. Both are running in the opposite direction so I figure we're safe. A surge of dread pumps through my body as I immediately remember the giant who tackled me. I turn in horror and see that the district 1 boy has Meg by the neck against a tree.

"LET HER GO!" I scream trying not to let my panic show in my voice. The boy grins and clamps down harder on Meg's thin neck.

"I SAID LET GO!" I howl at the defiant boy angrily. The boy turns towards me slowly, with a hand still on Meg's neck and smiles. Before I realize what's happening, I see the boy run something over Meg's neck and she tumbles to the ground. Before the boy even has a chance to exhale, my sword, Sam's good knife, and Blake's arrow pierce his thick body and he too falls. I stumble towards Meg blindly vaguely aware that I'm screaming loudly. AS I draw nearer I see the severity of her situation. The boy's sword cut deeply into a large blood vessel in her neck. Without thinking, I tear a piece of my black shirt and apply pressure to her wound. Her eyes flutter and she looks at me and raises a shaky hand to her neck. Her eyebrows crease in confusion, she must've blacked out when he was holding her against the tree. Her warm and sticky blood soaks through the t-shirt scrap dangerously fast. I reach up and tear another scrap off and continue to apply pressure. The piece soaks on contact and as I go for another chunk, a hand stops me.

I whirl around and see Blake standing over me holding my hand back, looking stern.

"Stop," he commands me, "you're going to ruin your shirt, theres nothing you can do now." He says apologetically. I ignore him and try again to tear another section before I feel pressure again on my left hand. I whip around and send a punch in Blake's direction. I feel my fist make contact with his cheek and he stumbles to the ground. I ignore my fallen ally and return my attention to meg. I realize that her eyes are no longer moving, Panic fills my body and I shout at her to wake up.

"c'mon c'mon…" I mumble under my breath trying desperately to wake her up. Suddenly there is a squeeze in my right hand and I look down, Meg is holding my hand. She opens her thin lips and whispers something I almost don't catch.

"_Thank you. Tell me family-." _She stops mid-sentence and I watch in anticipation for her to finish. The would in her neck stops pulsing and her eyes flutter close.

"Meg….Meg?...Meg?" oh my god. Oh. My. God. "HELP, DO SOMETHING!" I scream at Blake and Meg who stand frozen a few feet behind me. "MEG!" I scream frantically trying to think back to health class but no remedy comes to mind.

I feel a pair of strong hands pulling me backwards away from a deathly white Meg. I flail frantically and kick and swing my arms around desperate to escape. Meg and Blake force me to my feet and block me from the dead girl. I try to slip between them as tears start streaming down my face.

"You don't understand!" I sob loudly tearing at their clothes and trying to reach the beautiful blonde girl lying against the tree. "We can help!" I scream, desperate now. Blake looks and me with true sympathy in his eyes and tries to calm me.

"Come on Haden," he says softly, "we can't help her-"

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" I scream at him hysterically until I think my throat may collapse and I slide to the ground. Blake crouches next to me and I watch Sam zip up Meg's jacket and lay her cold body down. Somehow the 16 year old's gentle touch only makes me more angry so I stand and walk quickly back to camp. I grab my fleece blanket and my bag and jog quickly towards the edge of the woods.

"hey…HEY!" I can hear Blake shouting behind me but I don't stop. I'll never stop. "HADEN _STOP!"_ he yells more desperate this time. I twist around in his direction and walk briskly towards the boy who used to be my friend.

"NO. SHE _DIED _WHILE YOU SAT ON YOUR ASS AND DID NOTHING! SHE DIED! DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND THAT?" I shriek at him in a dizzying rage.

"I CAN'T SAVE EVERYONE OK?" he shouts back equally angry, "DO YOU THINK I WANTED HER TO DIE? OF COURSE I DIDN'T! SHE'S LIKE MY SISTER" he cries impatiently. His final statement sets my decision in stone and I duck out of the clearing and as far away as possible from the people who let the girl I _loved _die. I race hurriedly past the pond and back into the cover of the trees. I'll never know what she wanted me to tell her family.


	27. Guilty

_**I know I know! You're all mad at me for killing Meg! I'm soo sorry! I didn't want to! But I have to make sure I keep the story interesting and suspenseful and it wouldn't be a very good story if all the good guys got away scot free! I just want to say thank you to everyone especially those of you who kept reading and are still supportive even when I killed your wonderful character! A specific shout out to IronFeyFreak who stayed loyal even when I killed Robbie and Demetria! I wish I could keep everyone alive but it's the hunger games! Sad face oh and also…..40,000 words!**_

_**Whitley Hedge **_

I've lost count now. 3 days? 5 days? 7 days? I have no idea we've been in the arena. I haven't seen very many people and no deaths. Another thing I haven't seen any of its sponsor gifts. Is Orion getting anything? Is there anything? Questions swirl around in my head a mile a minute when noises disturb my thoughts. I freeze and watch as a distraught boy walks into my line of vision, obviously crying. I'm confused, He's one of the only people in the arena that I've seen so I have no idea what's going on earlier. I suddenly put 2 and 2 together and realize the cannon that went off about 30 minutes ago must've been for a friend of his. I watch from my tree top hide away as he kneels to the gound on top of the soft soil. His face is red and swollen from crying and yet he looks angry at the same time. He slams a balled fist to the ground and cries harder by the second. This boy reminds me Ryder. My heart catches in my throat and I almost jump down to comfort him. Almost. The thing that tears me apart in these games is ability the careers have to mercilessly kill. Do they not consider that everyone here has a family back home and that we're all just _kids?_ Of course they don't I think to myself. What a foolish thought. No one here thinks about one another. They only think about saving themselves.

A sudden throbbing pain in my back almost causes me to fall off the branch in surprise. I let out a high pitched and squealy scream. I instantly clap a dirty hand over my mouth horrified. Now the boy knows where I am. I am as good as dead. I slowly turn my head down towards whoever attacked me. Below my branch is a lanky girl who I think came from nine. I reach behind my hand and grope until I find a loosely lodged arrow and pull it out. A screaming pain races through my body as I pull the arrow out past my spinal cord. Sweating now, I turn my attention back to the crying boy but he doesn't seem to notice me. He is focused on the district 9 girl. I watch intently as the boy creeps up to the unsuspecting 9 girl. He takes a knife from his bag quietly and quickly slits her throat. She falls to the ground and her cannon sounds almost instantly. At least it is quick. I suddenly become aware of the pain in my back and the blackness creeping into the corners of my vision. I feel a falling sensation for a few seconds before I black out.

_**Blake Daley **_

_Shoot. Shoot shoot shoot shoot. _I should've chased him, I know it. I'm so overwhelmed with emotion and anxiety that I don't know what is the right thing anymore. All I know is that my friend lies dead, feet away from me. Samantha buries her face in my neck, sobbing for her friend. Tear after tear also slips from my eyes as I gaze at meg's pale face. The girl that was once full of life and happiness lies dead in front of me, and its crushing. I begin to choke on my tears and I feel my face turn red. _Stop Blake. Be strong for Sam. _But I can't. I can't. This girl was from my district, my home. I almost felt like she was my only connection to home. I sit and weep for this girl, this friend, and I feel the anger start to take over. I stand up and start to pace and Sam continues to cry next to Meg's body.

"UGH!" I exclaim slamming my fist into a nearby tree. I'm SO stupid. I should've done something. The truth is that I'm not brave and I'm not strong. I'm a 16 year old boy and I can do absolutely nothing to stop the people I love from dying. I'm filled with rage for the capitol. How could they let this happen? HOW! We are _kids! _How could they do this to us, I don't understand. My grief consumes me and I can no longer think about anything. I sob and sob until I can cry no longer. I feel like this is all my fault. If I hadn't have gotten tackled I could've saved her. This is all my fault. I practically killed her. And now Haden is gone too. Even worse is the fact that he hates me. He thinks I wanted this. I didn't want this anymore than I wanted to be reaped. I resent this. The crushing feeling of guilt engulfs me in its dark grasp and squeezes until I can hardly breathe. Everything, this is all my fault. I use my sleeve to wipe my eyes and reaproach Meg. She looks peaceful I convince myself. Like she's sleeping. An idea blindsides me and I almost stumble to the ground. I know what I have to do. I walk about 50 feet from our camp and begin to dig. I will not let the capitol have my friend. I won't have her returned to district 8 in a wooden box. She will not die in vain.

_**Trixxie Finnegan **_

I crack my knuckles slowly and sigh. The sun is setting on another day in the arena and today was quite the day. I watched Glare Zenton murder Meg Saiden and it was horrible. To be honest, if the others hadn't have killed him, I would have gotten him myself. No one deserves to die like that. The memory is one of the only ones that really bothers me. I can usually ignore my feelings about those things but this is different. Something about the innocence of the girl brings foreign tears to my eyes. I quickly wipe them away. I am not weak. I have to admit though, sometimes I get nervous at night. Its not so much the actual darkness as the fact that I don't feel like I'm in control. I feel like I could be attacked at any moment and I'd never wake up. The thought makes my skin tingle and the hairs on my arms stand up straight.

Suddenly there's a scream that comes from somewhere to my left. I crane my neck and see Whitley Hedge stuck in the spine with an arrow. The sight makes me cringe and I watch as she pulls it from her back. Another figure moves up to the district 9 tribute and slits her throat quickly and painlessly. The next event stuns me. Whitley falls from the tree and the shadowy figure catches her. He _catches _her. He steps forword where there is a break in the trees and I can see it that it is Haden Saen. My heart soars as I realize he is not going to kill her, but help her. I watch as he drags her to the base of a large tree and rolls her over to check her wound. His hands raise to his shirt when he hesitates. I watch curiously as he continues moving, and rips a strand of cloth from his own t-shirt and uses in to cover her cut.

The silence of the quite forest is suddenly broken by a tinkling chime noise, I'd recognize it anywhere. At first I think the parachute is coming towards me but then I realize that it is headed towards Haden. The stunned boy pulls open the container and smells it. His face crinkles in disgust and I understand that it must be some sort of medicine. Apartently the idea occurs to him too because he begins to rub the salve on the girl's back. The wind blows the scent my way and I am instantly soothed by the minty fresh scent of the capitol cream. I watch as the boy begins to get settled for the night by covering himself and the girl in a dirty blanket he pulls from his backpack. I know it would not be wise to remain here during the night because he would surely see me perched in the tree and he may not be so forgiving the second time. I begin to leap from tree to tree on my way to the tree I camp in. I chose a large pine tree and the beginning of the games and I have remained there ever since. I managed to hollow out a thick branch and I have been sleeping curled up in the "cup" wrapped in a thin blanket I got from the careers while they weren't looking. I settle into my bed and fall almost instantly into a sleep. The act of kindness I saw today proves to me that maybe not everyone here is bloodthirsty

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

"Do you think it will heal?" I ask, referencing the cut on my neck. Dorn shrugs and runs a hand down my freshly braided hair. I was surprised when he offered to do it because…I don't know….I didn't know boys could braid.

"I think….. That even if it doesn't, you will be just as pretty!" He says with a smile. I grin. Dorn makes me feel so safe and happy, almost like I imagine having a dad would. He always puts me before himself and seems to really care about me. I lean back into his arms and close my eyes as he strokes me hair. I feel myself almost drifting asleep when I smell something. I sit bolt upright and my eyes dart around wildly. Yes, I'm right. Fire. Dorn is already on is feet and as shoving our stuff into the back. I look around trying to find the source of the smell, and then I see it. A huge fire roars not 20 meters away from us. Dorn and I begin to sprint in the opposite direction. My heart races and I realize my worst nightmares are coming true. Dorn practically has to drag me to keep me moving the smoke is so thick. I drop to my knees, coughing.

"Go." I say "Leave me." Dorn rolls his eyes like I just asked to borrow a million dollars and he pulls me onto his back. I bounce up and down as he hurtles away from the fire faster than I think I've ever seen anyone run. After 10 minutes of running, we seem to escape the fire, but the smoke is still thick. I cough again and the last thing I see is the bouncing forest in front of me before I pass out.


	28. Last Words

_**Hi so um….you should write a review! Haha I hope you like this chapter, tell me who you wanna hear from next! I love you guys so much and thanks for reading! And and there's another bad word in this chapter….I feel so rebellious!**_

_**Orion Northcliff **_

My chest heaves up and down and I raise a hand to my would. I wince as the pressure of my fingertips meets my raw skin. I take a shaky breath and try to ignore the searing pain in my stomach. I pull my hand away from the wound only to find it covered in my own warm blood. I consider trying to move but I know that I am too weak. I lie my head down on the mossy floor of the forest and try to concentrate on something else besides the fatal wound in my stomach.

_**Earlier that day **_

I had a good night's sleep, a real luxury in the arena. I prop my head up and observe my surroundings, empty, like they have been for days. I must've picked a really good hiding spot because I haven't seen anyone since the first day. I close my eyes and let the cool breeze whip over my face. The effect is almost calming, an emotion I didn't expect to feel coming into it. I'm not quite sure how many people are left, I've been taking each day at a time and not focusing on the overall. I place a hand on the cool concrete wall of the maze and stand up. I quickly roll up my sleeping bag up and tuck it into one of the bags I stole from the careers. I peek out from behind the sturdy wall of the maze and to my surprise, I see someone, or two someones. It's the district 1 girl Ruby and a boy whose name or district is unknown to me. They appear to be arguing but my hideout is all the way across the meadow from them so I can't be sure. I run a hand through my short sandy hair that is starting to grow longer from the lack of its daily haircut.

I watch as the boy seems to shout something at the girl and walks towards the cornucopia away from her. She stands for only a moment before chasing after him and wrenching him to face her violently. He utters a scream that even I can hear and she growls something in his face. He doesn't look surprised, just angry. He roughly brushes her hand from his back and sets off back into the maze. The girl looks furious now, maybe even a touch of embarrassment. She storms back to camp and throws herself roughly into a folding chair they must have taken from the cornucopia. I watch for at least 20 minutes and realize she must have fallen asleep.

I smirk to myself and dart out from the walls that have become my home to the stash of goodies from the cornucopia. I step carefully past her and onto a pile of assorted foods. I snatch what I think is a pear, but I can't be sure, I've never seen one in real life before. I also grab a small canister of water. I'm about to escape with my stolen goods when I trip over a fallen box and stumble to the ground. I turn in horror and watch as the cruel girl's eyes snap open and fix themselves on me. I crab walk backwards trying to get as much distance between the girl and myself but she seems to have another plan for me.

She rises surprisingly quickly and tears a sword from a back pack next to me and comes at me quickly. Panic fills my chest and I stand up and raise my bow and arrow and aim it at her face. I let an arrow fly and it shoots towards her with a glint of sliver and I think I've gotten her.

At the last second she dodges the quick arrow and continues towards me. I turn now and run back for the maze. I'm almost in the safety zone and into the maze when a burning pain sears through my chest. I look down and see the short dagger slice through the area just below my ribs and fall to the ground. The pain almost causes me to fall but the adrenaline pumping through my body doesn't let me. I'm blinded by the pain as I stagger deeper and deeper into the maze. I think I've lost the girl because I no longer hear footsteps behind me. I'm only in the maze for a matter of minutes before I get out into the forest area which I didn't even know was there. I wander into a thickly wooded area before allowing myself to collapse.

My chest heaves up and down and I raise a hand to my would. I wince as the pressure of my fingertips meets my raw skin. I take a shaky breath and try to ignore the searing pain in my stomach. I pull my hand away from the wound only to find it covered in my own warm blood. I consider trying to move but I know that I am too weak. I lie my head down on the mossy floor of the forest and try to concentrate on something else besides the fatal wound in my stomach. My eyes slowly fold shut and I focus my attention on making sure I'm still breathing.

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

UGH! I was so close. Anger courses through me as I continue through the large maze trying to find my way out. _Stupid boy. _If Glare had never let him into our group this would have never happen. At least he got payback. I think to myself with satisfaction. I can feel the sharp tip of my only remaining dagger prod my lower back where it is hidden. My heavy breathing slows down as I try to follow the path Glare led Zaylie Piston and I down only a few days ago. The turns become more and more familiar as I turn each one on my way through the maze. I come up on the last turn and stick my head outside the walls to check for tributes. Nothing.

I casually walk out of the confining walls of the maze grateful that nothing attack me this time. I decide not to go back to our old camp because surely Piston will go there first and I'm NOT in the mood to have a run in with an immature idiot. I decide instead to climb a nearby tree and wait for my victims to come to me. Scaling the large pine tree is harder than I expected considering the fact that the lower branches are extremely thin. The farther up I climb the branches grow thicker so I am able to crawl more quickly I decide I'm happy where I am so I crawl to the center of the tree when something startles me.

_**Trixxie Finnegan **_

The redheaded girl gasps as she sees me and my knife almost tumbling backwards to the ground. She raises her hands up to show me she isn't armed but I don't believe it for a second. I press the knife to her neck with the full intent of killing her. If she dies, all the careers will be gone and I'll have a good chance of winning this. I apply more pressure to the blade and a gurgling sound escapes her throat.

"Stop!" She pleads desperately. "We can help each other." I know it's a desperate plea but the idea of an alliance causes me to momentarily loosen my grip on the blade. I'm caught completely off guard when she reaches into her waist band and removes a small dagger. It happens quickly but I register what is going on just in time to dodge to the side as she lunges for my face with the short bladed weapon. She sticks the tree instead and is now having a problem removing it from the unforgiving pine bark. I take advantage of the situation and kick her in the stomach sending her teetering backwards. She manages to get the knife out of the tree just in time before see falls backwards. She fails for a moment before coming back at me. I shriek and duck again as she makes another attempt at stabbing me. This time she catches the cartilage of my ear which hurts more than I would expect it to. I don't bother to feel the cut, instead I shove her backwards towards the edge of the tree. I'm about to push her off when she surprises me and turns to leap off instead. I feel my knife catch her face just above her eyebrow but she gets away anyways. Damn.

_**Haden Saen **_

I don't know what I was thinking. She could wake up at any moment and viciously stab me to stab but something about her face tells me she won't. I feel a little creepy watching her sleep like this but I want to be right there when….and if she wakes up. I pick at my finger nails and nervously tap my foot waiting for her to wake up. The anticipation is killing me and I'm dying to see her eyes open. My heart skips a beat and I think I see her eyes open slightly. I look again. I wasn't mistaken, she's definetly waking up. The first thing she does is raise a shaking hand to her wounded back and then to my face. I sit perfectly still as she runs a smooth hand down the side of my square head. Her eyes narrow in confusion and her brow creases.

"Who are you, where am I? why does my back hurt?" She asks softly.

"My name is Haden, someone stuck you in the back, you're in the hunger games." Realization flashes across her face and her eyes slide closed again.

"Thank you." She whispers so quiet I almost miss.

Just like Meg's last words


	29. Fat

_**Wow…its been like… 3 days. In my head, it was like 7. Haha I missed you guys! Finals are keeping me SO busy but they end on Thursday so YAY! But anyways…WRITE A REVIEW haha! But seriously, do it. And to give you some incentive…The sponsors have been fairly quietly that you've seen… If you write a review by tomorrow afternoon I'll put your name along with anyone else who writes a review's name in a hat and if I draw your name, I'll send you a private message and you can pick a tribute to send a sponsor gift to! Muahahah.**_

_**Blake Daley **_

_Dead. _The word tastes sour and unfamiliar in my mouth. _Gone. Lost. Erased. _No matter how I phrase it, the concept still brings angry tears to my eyes. I swipe the last patch of dirt over the grave that now holds a friend of mine. I stand up and brush the damp soil from my body and pick it out from underneath my fingernails. I can hear Samantha's heavy breaths behind me, but I don't turn around. Not because I don't want to see her, that's all I want. Because I don't want her to see me. I've held it together pretty well so far considering our circumstances but this event has caused my walls to come crumbling down. I feel vulnerable and afraid, weak. I gently sit down in front of the freshly dug grave and stare at my makeshift tombstone. I know it's stupid to leave it there, it will let others know that we've been here when we leave, but I refuse to have it any other way.

I can feel Samantha's shaky hand on my shoulder and she quickly sits down next to me. We both sit with our legs crossed and hands folded in our laps staring uncertainly at the cheerful blonde girl's final resting place.

"Should I say something?" Samantha asks. She's trying hard to keep the waves of her voice unnoticeable but I can hear them. I say nothing but nod instead. Sam runs a dirty hand through her brown hair before opening her mouth to speak. "Meg…where do I begin?" We only knew each other for a 2 weeks but I feel like I've known you for a life time." Another quivering breath. " You always had something comforting and nice to say to me and kept me strong on the days I thought I would break." There's no mistaking the sound of her tears now but I can't look, I can't let her see me. "And I….I'm gonna miss you a lot." She barely chokes out her last words before beginning to cry. A sob catches in my throat to and I finally turn to Sam. Her face is buried in her tan fingers and her body is shaking uncontrollably. I place a sturdy hand on her trembling shoulders and lean against her for support of my own. My eyes stain the side of her jacket with tears and she turns to me and wraps her thin arms around my neck and fits her face into the curve of my neck.

Her tears only make mine come faster and harder until I'm weeping like a giant baby. Even though I can barely breathe, I feel the need to say something. My usually deep and smooth voice cracks and stutters as the words pour out of me.

"I hope you knew how much you meant to all of us and that we're going to miss you _so badly." _I almost don't get the last word out before I am rendered unable to speak again. Meg's grave swims in front of my eyes one last time before I close them and wrap my shaking arms around Samantha's muscular back.

_**Dorn Till **_

_Crap. Crap crap crap crap crap. _Hailey limply slides off my back and falls to the ground without resistance. The fire seems to have stopped so we're safe to stop for now. She's not breathing. I place a gentle finger on the blood vessel in her neck and feel for a pulse. The faint beat of her heart is there, but weak. Panic courses through me as I try to think of a solution. _The Heimlich maneuver? Beating her heart for her? CPR? _My thoughts jumble around inside my head as I try to think of a solution to this problem. I curse myself for not paying that much attention in the life saving part of health class and decide to try CPR since she doesn't seem to be breathing.

Er wait, isn't CPR when you need air after drowning? I don't remember but decide to give it a whirl anyways. I pinch her tiny nose shut and pull her relaxed lips apart and press my mouth to hers. _In 123, In 123, IN 123. _I keep count of the breaths in my head and continue forcing breaths into her body. _Breath nine. Breath ten. Shoot. _She STILL isn't breathing and I have no idea what to do next. I decide to check her pulse again but my hands are shaking too badly to tell. I swear under my breath and quickly unzip her jacket so I can press my head to her rising chest to see if her hear it beating. Wait a second, rising chest? I do a double take and check again. Yes! She's breathing! I excitedly press my ear to her heart and listen for the beat. I listen giddily as her heart picks up the pace and returns to normal. I bite my tongue suddenly as her chest rises violent in a cough. Blood fills my mouth but I don't care, Hailey is waking up. I lift my head up and look over right into her foggy eyes.

"Getting a little personal aren't we?" she says slurridly with a small smile referring to the fact the my face is still pressed against her chest. A snort escapes me and I press my lips to her right ear.

"I just saved your life so yes, I'd say things _did _just get personal." A smile spreads across her face and she fails her left arm around confusedly until she meets me back and pats it roughly.

"Good job, what a useful talent, I'm sure you'll be doing a lot of life saving when you get back home." She says closing her eyes. I stand up and tug her onto my back again so we can keep moving away from the site of the fire and the toxic smoke. Her hands clasp around my neck as I walk in the opposite direction of the fire still panting a little from the exertion of sprinting with 100 pound on my back.

"You're _heavy." _I grunt as we walk farther and farther away from the charred forest.

"Are you calling me _fat?" _Hailey asks in mock offense.

"Yes. Yes I am." I can practically feel the warmth of her smile on my backside as carry her to a new part of the forest.

_**Whitley Hedge **_

When I wake again the boy is leaning against a nearby tree fiddling with the hilt of a particularly cruel looking sword. I sit up so fast that I almost fall back down again from dizziness. Three of the same looking boys rush at me before the combine into one at my feet.

"Hey hey, its ok." The memories of my last awakening flood my mind at remember that this boy saved me. Unfortunatly with these memories comes the ones of me being wounded in the back. My eyes widen and my hand flies to my backside to feel the wound. There is a large gash in my back about the size of a dollar coin and about 1 inch deep. I flinch at my own touch and my entire body quivers with pain. When I pull my hand back I see that it is not only covered in blood but some sort of whiteish cream. I don't even have a chance to ask the boy what it is before he tells me.

"You got a sponsor gift," he says, "medicine for your wound." He produces a medium sized silver container from his pocket with a flourish and I can smell the faint smell of mint. I know that he must've helped me after I blacked out but I still have questions.

"Who are you? What happened to the district 9 girl? How did you crawl up the tree and carry me down? Why didn't you kill me?" The questions pour out before I can stop them but he doesn't seem to mind.

"My name is Haden, I'm from district 11. I took care of the district nine girl. After she shot you, you fell from the tree and I caught you. I helped you because if I were you, I would've wanted someone to help me." His eyes narrow at his last answer like maybe he isn't telling the whole truth but I don't push him anymore. I sit up a little straighter and pull a leaf from my hair and bite on my fingernail.

"How bad is it?" I ask referring to my arrow wound. His face looks serious as he answers which scares me a little.

"Kind bad," he admits slowly, "but nothing that can't be fixed. Its near your spine so just be thankful that you didn't get hit a few inches over because you'd really be screwed." He says sternly. I smile in relief and let out a small laugh.

"Thanks again." I say sincerely. He only smiles and applies some cream to my back.


	30. Shy

_**Hi again…its me! LOL its like…2 in the morning where I live (um yeah you'll probably be able to tell by the load of mistakes in this haha) and I have to get up and study today but SCREW IT! You should be so thankful, even my cat wants me to go to sleep. Haha I just…I dunno I wanted to know what happened next ( I just make up the story as I go, I don't have some big master plan besides the ending. WAIT WHAT? MEGYN KNOWS HOW ITS GOING TO END? Yes little duckling. I I'm really excited for you to know it too!) and yeah to find out what happens next I have to write it. The if you comment by tomorrow thing is still on so yeah I'll contact the person who won then! And I have another challenge for you (some of you anyways) There are about 5 or 6 people who have my story on alerts or whatever that don't comment so my challenge is if one of you leaves a review…I don't know…You can pick another sponsor gift I guess haha. So puh-lease leave a review for the love of bagels! Oh and one another thing, addressing the Orion situation, that was my attempt at a cliffhanger…whoops! I hope your questions will be answered with this update! AND ANOTHER BAD WORD WARNING! I 've just gotten so loose with the bad words! I hope you don't mind ahh! I don't say bad words like um…ever in real life so this makes me feel all super dangerous!**_

_**Dorn Till **_

I wince as I rinse the blistering burns on the backs of my thighs. The water soothes my burns somewhat but near enough. Each drop of water is like sharpened knives stabbing at the raw backs of my legs. I want nothing more to collapse in the cool water and just never come up, but I can't do that. I release a raspy sigh and wading farther into the pond. I'm suffering from some pretty bad burns on my arms, neck, shoulders, and hands as well as my legs. At first it just looked like I had gone frolicking through a patch of poison ivy but now I look like I have some hideous flesh eating disease. I try hard not to look though because the sight of my charred skin somehow makes it worse.

"Hey Dorn I found a good pl- SHIT WHY ARE YOU NAKED?" Hailey's dry voice carries through the forest and makes me keel over from laughter. I walk out of waist deep water I had waded into a few seconds before she came and reveal that I am indeed wearing bottoms. Hailey slumps against a tree mumbling a few more choice swear words as I laugh.

"What? You scared of naked people?" I say with a smile tugging at the corners of my lips as I turn around and wiggle my (fully clothed) butt at her. She squeals and covers her deep brown eyes with her small hands and approaches the shore. I walk inwards to meet Hailey, who still has her eyes covered. She removes her hands but keeps her eyes closed and reaches out towards me. She wobbles slightly until her outstretched palms meet my bare chest. I raise an eyebrow even though she can't see it as she leans into my neck and whispers something into my ear.

"On the contrary TGI," she says with fierce conviction, "In fact, I am actually naked right now. Under my clothes." I snort with laughter and the corners of her mouth curl upwards into a smile as I laugh. I wonder how she knew about Crystal's name for me but the thought escapes my mind as her hands shift to my shoulders. My laughter stops and her eyes shoot open as her delicate fingers rub over my burns. The smile disappears from her face and her features harden. "Turn around." I don't argue and instead spin around so she can see the damage. A gasp slips from her lips as she traces the red outline from my back to my shoulders to my hands.

"Oh my gosh, I didn't know you were burned! These are really bad." She says in shock the humor gone from her voice.

"Thank you captain obvious," I say trying to lighten the mood, "but I'll be fine. I found some leaves that help the pain subside" Ok. That last part might be a lie. I can see the doubtful look in her eyes but she seems to accept the answer and begins to tell me what she was going to say before our little misunderstanding.

"Anyways, before you got all half naked and Dora the Explorer-y on me, I was going to tell you I found the perfect place to set up camp. I bend over to pick up my singed clothes and gesture for her to lead the way. We were pretty lucky in finding this pond, especially since the surrounding area seems abandoned. She leads me to a strange looking tree that was a C shaped trunk. The hollow is the perfect size for both Hailey and I to fit into for sleeping. Hailey's bag is leaning against the thick trunk and our blanket is already lied inside the mouth of the trunk.

"It's perfect, good job!" I say sincerely. My words make her smile shyly, a word that I haven't yet used to describe her. It's getting dark and we've had a rough day so we settle our makeshift home for the night. The temperature of the arena drops rapidly at night but sleeping together under the blanket helps conserve body heat. I'm just starting to doze off when small sudden movements rouse me. I suddenly realize that Hailey no longer has her leather jacket; she must've accidentally left it in the fire. I slip off my jacket without hesitation and wrap it around her shivering shoulders. Her pale cheeks flush almost immediately at the warmth and her usually rhythmic breathing returns. I roll on my side and close my eyes. It's going to be a long night.

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

I can feel my pupils dilate as the sun sets on another day in the arena. I've been traipsing around for hours now looking for a tribute, preferably Piston if I could get my hands on him. I wearily rub my eyes and pull my hands away when I remember the painful gash above my eyebrow. That stupid Trixxie Finnegan. If she weren't so small and so fast I would've killed her for sure. My once long and glossy red hair is now sticky and matted with sweat and debris. I sweep it into a messy high pony as I walk around looking for tributes. After my run in with Orion my day has been fairly uneventful. I keep my eyes peeled for fires or sudden movement but there is nothing. I'm starting to consider turning in for the night when a cannon goes off right behind me. I whirl around and at first see nothing, but then see the dark outline of the district 5 boy. I walk over to his body and tilt my head down to look at him. The gash in his stomach is oozing some sort of horrible green pus and has completely crusted over. I wrinkle my nose in disgust and leave the dead boy for the hovercraft.

I continue walking quietly through the forest looking for a new victim. With Orion dead I think there's only like… Nine people still alive. A feeling of excitement surges through my body. Only seven more tributes to kill before I get to return to District 1, a hero. I walk around with a smile on my face when I sudden noise stops me in my tracks. I almost call out a nervous hello bu stop myself just in time as a mysterious figure emerges from the trees. I can't see who it is but I intend to find out. I raise my dagger viciously just as my opponent raises some sort of hammer. Hammer. Wait.

"Piston." I growl at the shadowy boy angrily. The boy does not even acknowledge my comment and instead lunges for my face. I neatly duck out of the way as Piston sails towards me swinging his hammer crazily. He loses his balance for a moment but quickly regains it and is facing me again. He doesn't waste any time and instead comes at me again but this time I'm ready. I duck and stick a foot out to trip him and he crashes to the ground. I don't give him a chance to get up before bringing the dagger down in his neck.

"I bet you regret calling me_ dumb_ now don't you?" I hiss quietly.

I don't get a reply before his eyes glaze over and the cannon sounds.


	31. Numb

_**Hey guyyss! I should probably be studying right now but I've been doing that since 9 in the morning and if I do it any longer my brain might fall out . so yeah I hope you like this chapter and please leave a review! I'm desperate haha. Anyways, if you leave a review, let me know if you liked that little contest thingy I just did! Should I do it again? And on that note the winner was notified and the gift will be given in this chapter so yay! Haha love you guys! OH and one another thing. I got a message asking me what songs I would put with this story so I'll put a little song list at the end of the chapter so you guys can see what music I would use if you're interested for this chapter and some of the other big moments! OH AND 50,000 WORDS BOOYAH!**_

_**P.S have any of you ever eaten microwave mashed potatoes before? Well you should because they are delicious. **_

_**Haden Saen **_

"So I just fell out of the tree?" Whitley asks curiously as we walk around the edge of the forest.

"Yeah," I say furrowing my eyebrows, "you kinda just swung off backwards." She smiles at the thought of falling from the tree and how narrowly she avoided falling to her death.

"And…you just saw me falling and caught me?"

"Pretty much." She smiles as she reaches back to feel her wound again. Pain flickers across her face when her fingers brush the spot. "Let's stop, it's about time to put on more medicine anyways. She nods and drops to the ground and I quickly follow. I pull the medicine from my pockets as her turns her back to me and lifts her shirt and jacket up to reveal the wound. I gasp in surprise. It looks so much better than it did even a few hours ago, I guess capitol medicine can do that. The spot is no longer bleeding and scabby but is already covered in a thin layer of new skin. I can feel her flinch as I apply pressure to the spot so I lighten up a little. Relief shudders through her body as the calming effects of the cream begin. She pulls her shirt back over her back and stands back up looking much better than a few moments ago. "Let's just stay here for a while." I say hopeful that she will agree. She glances around once before returning to the ground next to me and pulling her knees to her chest.

"So what have the games been like for you?" She asks quietly, and expression of genuine curiosity upon her face. I sigh inwardly and begin to tell my story.

"I dunno. I had some allies but we kind of had a falling out…that's why I wasn't with them when I caught you." It's not the entire truth but I really don't want to relive Meg's death. Even the thought is painful. "What about you?"

"Pretty much nothing. I had barely seen anyone before you and the district 9 girl." I nod, thankful that she hasn't had the same experience I have. She fiddles with her thumbs impatiently as though she's expecting me to say something but I have no idea what she could possibly want me to say.

"I know about your friend Meg." She says quietly avoiding my gaze. I look at the dirt and try focusing my attention on a particularly interesting fire ant that is crawling across the ground. "Do you trust me?" she asks sounding slightly hurt. I turn around and look into her eyes.

"Of course I trust you. It's just still a little hard to think about." She nods and relief flashes across her face. Now that I said it, I realize it's true. Not the Meg thing, the trusting thing. Something about Whitley makes me trust her even though I barely noticed her all throughout training. I don't know what it is but the voice in my head tells me that she won't hurt me.

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

"Ding Ding Ding. Ding Ding Ding. Ding Ding Ding." The soft chiming noise is just barely enough to wake me from my sleep. I sit up slowly and wipe the sleep from my wide eyes and look around for the source of the noise. It's too nice of a sound to be vicious tribute so I look for maybe some kind of colorful bird. At first I see nothing but then suddenly, a silver parachute slides into view. I throw the brown blanket off of me and flick Dorn in the ear.

"What the hell is so important…" He mumbles something grumpily before flipping on his other side and covering his face with his hands. I skip over to the sponsor gift and rip of the dainty little parachute to get to the good stuff inside. My hand curls around a large glass jar and I pull it out. Inside the transparent walls of the container is a green looking liquid about the consistency of applesauce. I have a hunch about what it could be but to make sure I test a spot on my skin. The wet spot immediately feels cold and numb. Burn medicine. Tears of happiness rush to my eyes but I push them away and hop back over to Dorn.

"Looksy what I have here!" I say in a low voice. The muscular boy does not even so much as look in my direction and instead lets out a big fake snore. "Ok then. I guess I'll have all the medicine to myself…" I say unscrewing the jar quickly. Dorn flips over so fast he smacks his head on the tree trunk and looks and me with wide eyes. I put a hand on my hip and raise my eye brows with a smirk forming on my face. He scrambles upwards and I hand him the container. With a red spot forming on his forehead he rubs a penny sized amount over his raw hands. He leans his head back and sighs in relief. I grin and he offers me the jar and tells me to apply some to his back. I gently rub the salve on his burns and watch them grow less red by the stomach. I walk back around to face him and hand him the jar with a little cream still on my fingers. I force a concerned gesture and point to his mouth.

"You've got something on your mouth, here let me help you…" I extend a slender finger a rub the medicine on the skin above his upper lip. He starts in surprise and wipes in on his arm quickly while I crack up. He jabs his finger into the container and brandishes it at me wildly.

"Hey look, you missed a spot!" He smears his finger across my upper lip causing me to raise a hand to my mouth to wipe it away.

"No fair!" I shout reaching across his body for the clear jar. He pulls it from my grasp and looks down at me with a raised eyebrow. I look up at him and suddenly my heart _stops. _Did he always have that dip in his skin below his chin? Were his lips always this red? My eyes are suddenly picking up things that I'd never before as we both stare at each other frozen. I blink once. Twice. And we're kissing. His mouth is warm and seems to fit perfectly in mine, a perfect match. The kiss is short if you blinked you might have missed it.. As I pull away, my lips tingle and something tells me it has absolutely nothing to do with the numbing properties in the burn medicine.

_**Trixxie Finnegan **_

The cool breeze of morning air brushes gently across my face and forces me awake. I glance around sleepily to make sure Ruby hasn't somehow crawled into my tree again and then stretch out. My limbs are sore from sleeping in an awkward position and my neck feels stiff. I crack my knuckles and roll my neck to try to loosen myself up and crawl to the end of the branch I slept in. There doesn't seem to be anyone around me so I decide it's safe to come down from my tree. I climb down absentmindedly with backpack in tow. I land softly on the forest floor and brush the branches and leaves from my body. My clothes have stayed in pretty much perfect shape since I haven't been doing anything too intense since entering the arena. I don't think anyone has gone back through the maze besides Ruby and Piston for obvious reasons. After hearing Zeke's death I can't blame them.

The ground smells moist and sags unpleasantly underneath my feet when I walk. The entire forest smells damp so I decide it must've rained while I slept or something. My stomach grumbles with hunger but I'm running low on food so I don't indulge myself at this time. I spot a berry bush which I happen to know contains blueberries and begin to collect some in the palm of hand. I'm about to pluck my last berry when a sudden booming voice causes me to jump a foot in the air.

"_Attention Tributes. Congratulations, you have all made it to the final 8. AS a reward, we will be hosting a…feast tomorrow morning. The event commences at sunrise. Don't be late. At the feast will be something for each of you that could very well help you win these games. Good luck." _

My heartraces as I make the executive decisionthat I will be attending this feast. I start walking towards the entrance, might as well get a head start.

_**Songs: **_

**Haden and Whitley this chapter: A thousand years- Christina Perri **

**Dorn and Hailey this chapter: secrets- one rebulic **

**Meg's death: set fire to the third bar (middle part)-snow patrol**

**Meg's funeral: cry- alexx calise **

**Demetria and Robbie into the light thingy: If I die young- the band perry **

**Blake and Sam swimming: glad you came- the wanted **


	32. Happy

_**Oh hi there! I know most people aren't really updating with finals and everything and I thought I wasn't going to either, but I had THE crappiest day ever. I got a B and a C on the finals I just took and I'm FREAKING out!(It dropped one of my grades from an A to an 88!Oh biology why do you have to be so hard…) I decided maybe writing would ease the stress….plus it always brightens my day when I get reviews hint hint. And um…I guess some of you liked the song stuff (Glimmerish47 I am talking to you! And um…who DOESN'T watch glee! And yes, I am sure that if we didn't live so probably far apart we would be friends haha!) So yeah. Please leave a review, it will make me sooooooo happy! And just…ya…thanks for reviewing, I love you to DEATH! OH AND PS. If I can make it to 100 reviews on this chapter, I'll do another sponsor gift thingy, so if we get to 100 and you comment, ill put your name in a hat for a drawing to send something to a tribute. **_

_**Samantha Sten **_

Right. Left. Right. Right. Right. Left. Left. Right. Left. Left. _Darn it, _I can't even walk correctly without tripping over my own two feet. My pace is slow but not so steady. Blake squeezes my hand every so often but with each squeeze I feel myself slip farther and farther from reality. My dirty brown hair hangs awkwardly in my face and I don't even bother to swipe it away. The world seems somehow duller than a only a few days ago, the joy seems gone from the air. Blake's eyes no longer crinkle when he smiles like he feels it too. As we make our way through the maze for the cornucopia feast I can't help but think about how great it would feel to lie down on the cool concrete. Walking back through the maze is taking a much longer time than it did walking in, or maybe it isn't, I'm not sure of anything anymore. All I'm sure of is that I don't know what's going to happen next.

An uneasy feeling rises in my chest as the cloak of night starts to lift and I can see the traces of sunlight peeking through the clouds as the sun rises. _Uh oh. _The sense of urgency increases and Blake and I pick up the pace. We've been walking for hours and still haven't found our way out. Its only a matter of time before we're mauled by a mutt or a crazed tribute. I wearily turn around another corner and relief floods through my body. _The exit. _I start to walk towards the empty cornucopia when a firm hand yanks me back. _Oh yea, I forgot, the hunger games. _I press my back flat against the cool wall and let my eyes flutter closed for what feels like the first time in weeks.

_**Trixxie Finnegan **_

I impatiently pick at my fingernails while I wait for the sun to come up. I've been waiting at the edge of the meadow area inside the maze since around 4 in the morning; I want to be ready for this. I actually have no idea what might be in this feast but I'm dying to find out.

It's like 6 in the morning now and there's no sign of any other tributes, maybe I'm the only one who was bright enough to show up. Sure enough a few moments later, a large metal box appeared from nowhere and seemed to gently float to the ground. I watch mesmerized as the metal container unfolds and reveals a pile of silvery bags. The bag material looks like some sort of heat preservation fabric. Hmmm…. I don't dare move yet, there's bound to be tributes hiding in every nook and cranny of this place but after a few minutes of silence, I decide that must not be the case. I ease myself up off the ground and take a few cautious steps towards the pile. Nothing. I dare to take a few more steps when something snaps behind me. I whirl around and raise my hands to my face expecting to meet the cruel edge of a sword. I almost fall over in surprise as I realize my vicious opponent is a large brown rabbit. I chuckle to myself and prance lightly over to the bags. Each bag has a thin golden tag on the top that has a district number on it. I dig out the bag marked 3 and begin to walk away. I'm almost back inside the safety of the maze when something gnaws at the inside of my stomach. If there's really no one else there, then why not take their bags? Consumed by the thought of what could possibly be in everyone else's bags that could be so important, I walk back to the pile. I dig through everything for a minute and decide that I can probably carry all of the bags. I hoist the thin satchels onto my back and begin to walk away when something slams into me from behind.

_**Dorn Till **_

Guilt. The unpleasant sensation consumes me thoroughly. _She asked you not to go. You promised not to go… _I shake my head and try to ignore my thoughts. No matter how hard I try, her smiling face comes to the front of my mind. _What if I don't come back? What if that was goodbye? _I shut my eyes and let the slowly rising sun reflect off my lids. I start to lose consciousness when a thump startles me awake. I poke my head out of the maze just in time to see a small blonde girl tip toeing over to metal crate that looks like it just landed. Inside the box is a collection of silvery bags. I crane my neck trying to get a better look while still in the protection of the maze. I think the girl is escaping with her bag when she suddenly reemerges from the maze. I'm confused at first, but then I understand, she's going in for more stuff.

I'm about to take a step towards her and tell her to leave the bags alone when someone beats me to it. With a flash of blonde hair and tan boy darts past me and slams the girl to the ground. She's only down for a second before she's wiggled from his grasp and is facing up, her hands balled into fists. The boy whose name I think is Blake seems momentarily but regains composure almost instantly. Blake slides what I think is a bow and arrow off his back but doesn't get a chance to load it before its Trixxie's turn to tackle. I watch with a grimace as the seemingly harmless girl raises a long bladed knife above Blake's forehead. She's about to bring it down in his head when an animalistic scream sounds from somewhere to my left. I glance around for a few seconds before I locate the source of the sound.

An exhausted looking brunette charges towards the two of them with a particularly large knife aimed at the girl. I watch in horror as the blonde brings the knife a few inches lower before coming to a complete stop and falling to the side. At this point I can see a glinting sword protruding from her hip bone. Her blonde hair falls around her almost peacefully and she closes her eyes. With the girl no longer blocking my sight I can see Haden Saen standing a few feet away from fallen body, arm still raised. Both Samantha and Blake look at the boy in surprise with expressions of gratitude. Haden and Blake exchange a curt nod before Haden pulls two silver bags from the pile before leaving with a girl I don't recognize. Blake gets up and embraces Samantha in a warm hug. I watch, happy for them when something registers in my mind. Trixxie's cannon hasn't gone off. Time seems to stand still as I watch the frail blonde reach up and sink a knife into Blake's back.

_**Blake Daley **_

They say that when you die, you're life flashes before your eyes. My dad yelling at me, the factories, stabbing my finger with a needle, my reaping, my first kiss, Meg, Samantha. Moments that are both important and useless float through my mind as I feel the wet patch on my back grow larger and larger. Samantha is screaming above me, but I can't hear her. I can't hear anything. I can see that she's screaming and sobbing and completely losing it, but I can't hear a thing. I raise my hand and a pain shoots through my arm to my fingers tips but I press my hand against her palm. She presses her other hand to my forehead and eventually places both hands on my face. She leans down and I lean up to meet her lips. In this moment I exhale one final time and my last thought floats through my brain.

_I came into this world unwanted and I leave it making a difference to someone, I am happy. _

_**death: Suggestions oriela**_


	33. Eighteen

_**Hey guys this chapter is short! Sorry but I have major writers block and why write if its gonna be boring! But anyways, I'm doing the sponsor gift thing again so review by tomorrow night and I'll put your name into a drawing to win a sponsor gift, ill message you if you win! So yeah, I beg you, LEAVE A REVIEW! Pretty please?**_

_**Samantha Sten **_

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Take it in. Breathe it out. The world seems quiet and for once, so does my mind. All that I hear is the steady sound of my breathing. My lips are slightly parted as I look around drinking in the scenes playing around in front of me. I look around vacantly and see people sprinting frantically. I see Dorn Till grab 2 bags from the pile. Maybe one of them is mine. Maybe. But it doesn't matter anymore. Nothing does. Blake's are closed gently and he looks peaceful. Like Meg. The memory of her face flits briefly through my mind and I am overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with sadness and anger and joy and love and hurt, all at once. I am also overcome with desire. Desire to change my last words to him desire to change of all of this.

My palms lie flat on the damp earth and my shoulders shake with grief. How do you fall for someone so hard, so fast? How do you lose someone so fast? I don't think it over, not even for a second. I get up and leave without looking back and walk through the tricky maze until I find my way out. You'll get through this the voices in my head say. Lies. All of it. I lie down under a tree and allow myself to drown in my regret.

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

Things I've accomplished today: Biting all my fingernails off, crying, breathing, and pacing. What can I say? I'm damn productive._ Where is he….? Did he go to the feast? No he would've told me. He promised! Did he even mean it? Is he coming back? _Panicked thoughts race through my brain as I begin to pace a rut in the ground. I raise a hand to my mouth only to remember that I no longer have nails to bite. I glance backwards towards the tree just to make sure my backpack is still safe and sound, not that it'd matter anyways, there's nothing left in it besides a water bottle and a dirty blanket. Hunger chews at my stomach but I am far too nervous to look for anything to eat. He's coming back. I tell myself. He will come back. He has to come back.

I feel the hands on my lower back first. Then my neck. Then my face. I almost collapse on the spot as Dorn wraps his arms around me and I fall into his warm embrace. "I thought you weren't coming back!" I sob hysterically, my emotions finally showing.

"shh…shhhh…I'm here now." I sob harder just thinking about what I could've lost. He strokes my hair gently and I press my face deeper into his shirt wanting to feel the rise and fall of his chest. Not used to displaying my emotions like this, I pull away and wipe the stinging tears from my eyes. Dorn watches me with a caring look on his face.

"You know you're allowed to be upset right?" He asks me sternly, grabbing my wrists so I wipe my tears.

"yeah," I say shakily, "it's just not what I'm used to." He lowers his arms and I stop crying and I remember that I am actually mad at him. "Hey! And what the heck? I woke up and you were GONE. Are you aware that TWO cannons went off? That could've been you for all I know! You SAID you wouldn't go!" I say jabbing an angry finger into his hard chest.

"Look. I'm sorry. I just thought we could use whatever advantages we could get…" He looks like a puppy. A puppy that just got reprimanded by his owner. He blabs nervously on about why he did it but instead I stand on my tip toes so I can reach his lips. The kiss is as soft and gentle as ever and it feels just right. _He's 18 _quiet voice says in my head. _Who cares? _We both smile when we pull apart and I roll back on the balls of my feet.

"Just shut up ok?" I say with a smile.

"Yes Ma'am." This time he leans down to me but I still have to tilt my head upwards he's at least half a foot taller than me. His arms wrap around my back and I follow suit as his hands move to my waist.

I don't know where this relationship will take me, but I'm ready to find out.

Song: Hailey and Dorn- Taylor Swift- Mine (like 49 seconds in.)


	34. Say It Again

_**7 reviews in one chapter? Who's awesome? YOU GUYS ARE! I am so thankful for each and every one of you and you can't even begin to IMAGINE how happy that makes me! I love you guys! Anyways, as promised I did the drawing so if you reviewed your name was entered in a hat and the winner got to pick a person and gift to send a tribute! So yeah we have a winner, however, the gift is going to be given in the NEXT chapter because I was having trouble working it into this one! I hope you guys like this chapter and review pretty please?Maybe we'll get 8 reviews…? AS always, thanks for reading!**_

_**Haden Saen **_

"Ok, this looks like a good place to stop, what do you think?" Whitley asks, the fatigue creeping into her voice.

"Yeah," I say, "it's as good a place as any." This day has been particularly rough and I'm thankful that she is just as tired as I am. We both sink to the ground slowly and just sit for a moment catching our breath. I suddenly remember that I never even looked inside our feast bags so I eagerly pull them out and toss one bag to Whitley. I watch as she slowly dips a hand inside and pulls out a bottle of blue liquid and bandages. She twirls the bottle in her hand to reveal that it is labeled in neat type "antiseptic". "Nice!" I exclaim, that will definitely be helpful. I'm fairly sure I already know what's in my bag due to the long shape. I sigh happily when my hunch is confirmed and I remove the sword. I turn the sharpened weapon over slowly in my hand. This one is heavier than the last and seems to be made out of a darker metal. Cool. I lie the sword down on the ground and watch intently as Whitley cleans her wound and wraps it. Her face contorts into a grimace when she first pours the antiseptic rinse but quickly relaxes. "Does it feel any better?" I ask sincerely hoping the answer will be yes.

"Yeah! The medicine has really helped and the rinse stopped some of the aching!" She says excitedly.

"Good." I say with a smile. She pulls her legs to her chest and rests her head against her knees softly. I watch her inhale and exhale shakily at first but then more steady. She turns her head so her cheek rests against her knees. I begin to look away when something catches my eye. She's crying. I freeze not knowing what to do. I extend an arm and retract it about 3 times before letting it rest on her back. She doesn't acknowledge my touch and instead the water droplets run faster down her face.

"hey…hey…It's ok, I'm here." I say gently while running my hand softly up and down her back. She reaches up and wipes the tears from her eyes and turns to face me.

"I just…I know I should be happy that more people died today because it gives me a better chance of going home but…I don't know how I can make myself feel happy that I watched two kids die a terrible death. Trixxie looked like she was only…14 and…." She begins to choke on her words and her face goes red.

"Who says you have to be _happy?_ You can be glad for yourself and still be sad for them at the same time." She nods slowly and looks right into my eyes.

"Yeah, you're right."

"Of course I am."

**Hailey Gracefield **

"Oh my gosh! It's like you were never even burned!" I exclaim in shock and joy. Dorn pulls his black t-shirt back down and turns to face me with a grin on his face. I lean forward and wrap my arms around his neck and hug him tightly to me careful to avoid his healed burns in case they are still tender. I close my eyes for a moment before I suddenly remember the bags that Dorn left me to get. I scramble upwards and spin around until I see them resting against a tree. I walk quickly over to them and pause for a only a millisecond before tearing the foil like bags open. My brow furrows in confusion when I see what is inside Dorn's bag. It's a _pitchfork. _Unless they were thinking we're going to start a farm, this gift is about as useful as a hairbrush. Dorn takes me surprise by pulling the instrument from my hand and running his hands up and down it excitedly. My eyebrow furrows in confusion as I watch him throw it a couple times to test the weight. "How is that helpful?" I ask confused. He turns back to me with a slow grin creeping across his face.

"This…is how I got 11." I don't ask for the details and instead open my bag. I almost laugh when I see the contents. I pull the leather jacket from the silvery bag and shrug Dorn's slowly off my shoulders. Not gonna lie, I'm a little sad to have to give it back. It's comforting to have a piece of him around me at all times but I have to give it back. I toss the jacket back and pull the new one on. Dorn and I sit down next to each other on the ground with our legs crossed. I lean my head on his shoulders and breathe in his distinctive smell. I don't know how he does it in a place like this but he smells sweet, like pine trees, freshly washed clothes drying in the sunshine, and strength. Yes, I decide, strength. It's in his blood and is noticeable in his eyes especially when he smiles. He smells of strength. It makes me feel strong and vulnerable at the same time. In moments I feel like the most powerful person on Earth when I stand next to him and in others I feel like being with him makes me easily breakable. But I like it. I like that I can have two dimensions. No matter how he makes me feel, I think it's worth it.

I lift my brown eyes to his and realize that he is already looking at me. He opens his mouth once and then closes it before beginning to speak.

"You know…I love that when you think, you make faces like you're acting out your thoughts. And I love that you always want to sleep with your head on my chest so you can feel my breaths. And I love that you're cautious of being with me, like I am with you. I love how your nose crinkles when you're confused and how your eyes sparkle when you're happy. I love that you're not afraid of me, even though I am very, _very_ afraid of you. And I think….that I love _you." _ My eyes widen and I am suddenly aware that I am crinkling my nose.

"Say it again." I say slowly looking directly at him.

"I. Love. You."

"Me too." He laughs with relief and leans down towards my face with the same familiar motions I've grown used to. _Eighteen._ A voice hisses inside me as we kiss. _And I'm fifteen. So what. _

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

4 more. Four more until I'm home. Four more until I can sleep in peace. Every part of my body aches and moans when take a step. _200 mores steps then you can rest. .195… _

I can't. I can't. The unfamiliar words float through my mind as I collapse with satisfaction to the ground. I breathe in the smell of the soil and give myself the luxury of shutting my eyes. I let my mind go blank as my eyes water from exhaustion beneath my tightly sealed eyelids.

SNAP. It takes me a full minute to realize that someone must be approaching so I decide they must already be upon me, so I lay very very still. 5 minutes pass. Then 10 and nothing happens. I open one eye and see nothing so I open them both. Nothing. I begin to move upwards to find a better hiding spot when I hear something. I go very still listening for the sound and it happens again. Crying. I look around until I see something leaning against a nearby tree. Samantha Sten. She is holding her face in her hands and her face is swollen red, she doesn't even notice me. I watch curiously as grief racks her body and she sobs loudly. I take a step forward and reach for my dagger when something stops me. _She's just like me. _Not in appearance because based off looks, we are as different as the sun and moon but in emotion. As I watch I realize that all I want to do is break down with her and cry for all that I have lost. It almost doesn't matter to me anymore, the fame, the fortune. It all seems so small in this moment. I lower my dagger back to my waistband and turn away. _Just this once. _

Songs: Haden and Whitley: Black star by avril levigne

Hailey and Dorn: Arms-christina Perri

Ruby: Allt Vero hiljot by Olafur Arnolds (I know it sounds weird, it's just like a violin-y song)


	35. The Beginning of the End

_**Hey guys! Sorry about not updating I'm so lazy! I don't really have much to say from the usual. 1. You guys are awesome 2. PLEASE review 3. SPOILER FOR THIS CHAPTER AHEAD PLEASE READ AFTER You READ SAMANTHA'S PART. This is just a note to let you know that that entire dream thing was just a dream while she was passed out, Trixxie and Blake didn't magically pop back alive just to be clear! OK so one other thing, if you leave a review tell me who you think is GOING to win! And yeah, I'm having another contest, if you leave a review I'll enter your name in a drawing and the winner gets to send a sponsor gift so yeah! Review away! I have another incentive. If we can get to 125 (ten more reviews) I will let two people pick sponsor gifts so…get on it!**_

_**Samantha Sten **_

I feel better but the telltale feeling of tear stains on my cheeks remind me of the night I had. My throat burns from dehydration, Blake had all our water. _Great, just another thing I can add to the list of stupid things I've done. _I force myself upwards but have to lean against a tree to keep from losing my balance. My vision waivers dangerously in front of me as I use the tree to support myself. I watch as the world fades to black as I pass out.

I'm standing inside the metallic cornucopia by myself. My instincts tell me to run and hide but a voice tells me to wait. I stand still for several moments waiting for something but when nothing does I take a few steps towards the mouth of the cornucopia. I suddenly notice that with each step, the exit seems to grow farther and farther away. I break into a jog and then a full out sprint. With each stride I only get farther away so I stand still. I shift my weight to my right side and wait for something to happen. A few seconds after I stop, a figure appears in the entrance of the cornucopia. I squint but it's no use, they aren't standing in the light. They move towards me and a sunbeam catches their face. Blake.

"Blake! It's me! I'm here! Help!" Blake smiles and waves taking a few steps towards me. I'm so distracted I almost don't notice the person approaching behind him. "Blake! There's someone behind you, run!" Blake doesn't seem to register what I said and continues towards me. "Can you hear me? RUN! RUN!" I scream as loud as I can but no matter what I do he doesn't hear me. He's almost to me when the sunbeam hits his pursuer's face. Trixxie. "Blake! Please run!" I begin to run towards him but I don't get any closer. The blonde haired figure is now upon him. I sob and scream uncontrollably as I watch her lift the dagger and plunge it into his back. No matter how hard I run or how bad I want it, I cannot reach him. Trixxe saunters towards me, complete with sword sticking out of her side. She speaks to me, but it isn't with her voice, it's with Haden's

"He died," she hisses, "he died while you sat on your ass and did nothing. Do you not understand that?" A shiver runs down my spine as I remember the dialogue from the night Haden left. Tears stream down my face and I try to back away from Trixxie but for each step I take back, she takes one towards me. I watch for the second time as the color drains from her face and she collapses to the ground. "It's entirely your fault. I hope you know that." The petite blonde snarls one last time before her eyes glaze over.

_**Dorn Till **_

"STOP! You are hogging _**the entire**_ blanket!" Hailey grouchily growls at me. I stick my tongue out at her but scoot some of the blanket towards her away. She flips over the opposite direction and then back towards me again before sitting bolt upright. "Well thanks, now I'm awake." She says with a hint of irritation creeping into her voice.

"Well maybe if you weren't so _fat _you wouldn't need so much room!" My comment brings a smile to her face because of its irony; she is the complete opposite of fat. She turns to face me again with a full on grin written all over her face.

"Am I making faces that act out my emotions right now?" She asks playfully.

"No…"

"Good." She bends down to my face and fits her lips to mine. I can't help but think we were born to meet. She pulls away with a familiar twinkle in her eyes. "Are you afraid of me now?"

"No." I breathe quietly. She kisses me again, shorter this time giving me no time to think about what's going on. She wiggles out from underneath the blanket and stands up. I watch as she checks around for tributes before checking the bag for something. I see concern flash across her face before she zippers the bag back up. "What is it?" I ask her quietly. She hesitates slightly before answering my question.

"Some of our food is missing…" I fling the brown blanket up and charge towards the bag and tear it open. Sure enough, our stick of beef jerky, pack of fruit, and hunk of cheese is missing. I glance around checking for the culprit but I don't see anyone. I let out a whistle and let the bag slouch on the ground.

"What are we going to-"I am interrupted by a near silent chiming noise coming from the right. I whip around ready to fight off Ruby or another opponent before I see what's going on. Hailey lets out a squeal of excitement and sprints towards a barely visible silver parachute. She trots back moments later with a HUGE container. It lands with a loud thud when she drops it making me extremely curious. Before I can ask, she is unscrewing the lid. I almost faint as the hearty smell wafts through the cool morning air. I peer inside the container and my suspicions are proven correct. 2 large biscuits, 2 beef jerky strips, 2 apples, and 2 smaller containers containing what must me soup greet me. I sigh with relief as I realize we should be set with food for the rest of the games. I unscrew the smaller containers and am greeted by piping hot French onion and tomato soup. My stomach grumbles and I become aware that I am rather hungry. I pull a beef strip and break it in half, handing the other half to Hailey. She takes it hungrily and shoves it into her mouth before mine even makes it past my lips. I snort as her nose crinkles slightly from the amount of food she's just shoved into her mouth. I look into the morning sky as I chew my beef.

_Thank you to whoever has our backs _

_**Whitley Hedge **_

"Attention Tributes! There will be a…surprise awaiting you at the cornucopia in two days' time. Attendance is mandatory. "

The short announcement interrupts Haden and I's intense conversation about our old bedrooms. Haden turns to me with a confused look on his face but I only shrug. Seriously, what is "Attendance is mandatory" supposed to mean?

"Well I guess we better get on our way to the maze opening so we can be ready in two days." Haden says offhandedly. I nod in agreement and we change directions and head North. We walk in silence for several moments before something catches my eye.

"Stop! Look at the dirt." Haden stoops to the ground and grabs a handful of dry soil. Dry. Only a few hours earlier the ground and been practically soaked with moisture. "What do you think is going on?" I ask, confusedly.

"This…is the beginning of the end."


	36. Shrubs

…_**..I have a lovely story for you guys. I was SO excited because I had literally just gotten my 125**__**th**__** review as I was checking my computer before bed and I FLIPPED out! I was so excited! So I sat down right there to write you guys a lovely chapter to wake up to. So after 4 and a half hours of half writing half eating and half watching gossip girl, I finished! I was so excited to put my chapter up for you! But then, I went to the website and it was all like error. You have no story. So I was like…..okayy….the site is obviously just having a problem so I was like, I'll come back tomorrow. So I wake up the next morning go to check my email and BAM! "Your story has been deleted blah blah blah." Cool bro. 125 reviews….gone. Just ugh words cannot even describe my inner rage. But anyways, let's hope this one doesn't get deleted too! As promised, two people got to pick sponsor gifts which will make their appearance in this chapter! Yay! And also….YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! I challenged you guys to see if we could get 10 reviews and you totally over achieved. You guys rock! And um one last thing PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE READ! So obviously, this story is nearing its end (insert sad face here) and I was wondering if anyone would be interested in reading another story like this if I wrote one! So um yaaaa! Thanks for reading!**_

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

The once welcomed cool breeze that brushes across my face only reminds me of how thirsty I am. I lick my lips desperately hoping for some relief but so moisture comes. It's only been about 9 hours since the pond dried but I'm starting to go crazy from dehydration. The illusion of water that the heat causes only makes me want it more. I poke a finger into the dry earth thinking that maybe it will be damp the farther down I go but no such luck. I press my back against the warm bark of the dark wooded tree and sigh. A person can only live so long without water… I begin to let my eyes drift closed when a sound startles me

A slight chiming noise grabs my attention and forces me awake. I turn my head quickly from side to side for a few moments before discovering the source of the noise. I burst into action and sprint towards the newly arrived parachute and rip the silver sail off with ease. My heart soars when I see the contents of the container. Water. 5 mini water bottles are arranged neatly inside the metal bin just begging to be drunk. I down one and a half bottles before I can even stop myself. The pure liquid slides down my throat unlike any water I've ever had before. I sigh in satisfaction as I drag the metal container to my shady tree hideout. I try forcing myself to stop drinking water because I know that I will definitely need it later but it almost kills me. Just one more sip turns into the other half of the second bottle before I have time to blink. Terrified that if I don't stop soon, my entire water supply will be depleted, I move to the other side of the tree where I can't see the fresh water.

I turn my attention to my dry and flaking nails and try to make them look a bit more presentable. It's not like I think it's important, it's just what I'm used to. My mind wanders to the events of the past couple of days and what might be to come. I'm not entirely sure what the whole meeting at the cornucopia thing will be about tomorrow but I know it can't be anything good. I mean, think about it. How on EARTH are they going to make sure everyone attends? It can only mean that they will unleash some horror in the outer circle forcing everyone into the maze and cornucopia. At the thought of meeting up with tributes again I absent mindedly pull my dagger from my waistband and examine it. Miraculously, it's almost as sharp as the very first day. It must be some sort of capitol technology because we don't even have anything like it in district 1.

I am suddenly aware of the long red hair that is in my face. When I move to brush it away, an impulse overtakes me. Without hesitation, I raise crisp blade and take a deep breath before slicing off about 4 inches of my hair. It's not anything huge considering my hair is way below my shoulders, but inexplicably, I feel different. I stare at the severed ends of my hair for a few moments before tossing them to the side and sweeping my hair back into its usual pony tail and continuing to mess with my nails. Maybe, I decide, different is better.

_**Haden Saen **_

"I spy something…green."

"Tree."

"Okaayyy….I spy something….brown."

"Tree trunk."

"uh…I spy something….light green."

"TREE!"

"Stop!" I shout through my laughter, "You're too good at this!" Whitley smiles modestly as though it were a very flattering compliment and laughs.

"What can I say…I just really know my surroundings?" She says while gesturing to the rather green and brown forest. I chuckle to myself as we walk across the dry ground. The conversation goes silent for a few moments before Whitley begins to say something again. "What do you think they mean by surprise?" She asks referring to the surprise announcements last night.

"Dunno. Maybe we'll get lucky. Maybe there will be cake." She laughs quietly as the stone walls of the maze finally come into view. It's been a while since either of us has been in the maze and quite frankly I'm worried about finding out how to get through. We both pause in front of immense walls and silently watch for any signs of movement. When nothing reveals itself I decide it's safe to set up camp so I roll out our blankets and dig a piece of dried banana out for each of us. Whitley accepts the fruit piece and nibbles on it silently while continuing to observe our new location. I sink to the ground and gesture for her to do the same. Still eating, she slides to the ground across from me and watches as I pick a leaf off our blanket as though it was the most interesting thing she'd seen all week.

"Do you think it's going to be like…. A second bloodbath?" She asks me with a twinge of both curiosity and fear in her voice.

"I'm not sure, it's likely though. This has got to be getting pretty long now and they'll be looking to wrap everything up pretty soon." Her eyes travel back to the discarded leaf and she purses her lips nervously for a few moments before opening them again.

"Do you think we'll make it?" She asks this time with more fear in her tone. I reach a hand out to hers and lean in to whisper something to her.

"I think we'll be just fine." Whitley turns to look at me and our eyes meet briefly before we are interrupted. I don't even have to pause between the chimes to know what is coming. I spring to my feet and twirl around awkwardly until I spot the silver parachute. I sprint towards the gift and rip open the rather large metal box quickly. I tilt my head to the side thinking there must've been a mistake, surely this cruel looking knife wasn't meant for Whitley or I. Before I can even ask Whitley what's going on, her slender hands slides over the hilt of the knife and curls naturally around it. I watch as she gets a feel for the blade and lets it rest nicely in the palm of her hand. I realize this must be her weapon of choice and that it's a gift for her. Whitley turns to me with a renewed sparkle in her eye as she opens her mouth to speak.

"Yeah, you're right."

"About what?"

"We're going to be just fine."

_**Dorn Till **_

"See that one?" I say pointing to an interestingly shaped cloud. "It looks like a turtle." Hailey snorts loudly as she closes one eye to get a better look at the cloud floating above us.

"I think it looks more like broccoli." She says matter of factly. I roll my eyes playfully and look back at the cloud.

"That looks NOTHING like broccoli, but maybe you could argue that it was a finely pruned shrub." Hailey howls with laughter and gives me a look.

"Because you have surely seen an abundance of _finely pruned shrubs _in your lifetime." I raise an eyebrow at her before I reply.

"Yes. I have. Are you…._jealous _of my many shrub sightings?" Hailey, still chuckling, rolls onto her stomach rests her chin on top of her hands. We sit in a strange silence for a few moments before Hailey says something.

"_If _we get out of here, what's the first thing you're going to do when you get home?." I pause thoughtfully for a moments before replying.

"Go for a walk. I think I'll thoroughly enjoy it once I no longer have to check for murderous tributes around every corner. Hailey smiles when I ask her the same question and replies without hesitation.

"Get a cat."

"A cat?"

"Yes. A cat. I figure if I'm a victor they can't refuse. She will be an orange tabby with white paws and I will name her oatmeal."

"Oatmeal…is a ridiculous name." Hailey's nose reflexively crinkles as she replies.

"Yes well arguably so is _Dorn." _

"Hey!" I cry pretending to be hurt. "That wasn't very nice."

"Hey, you insulted my cat name so obviously you started it." Hailey says while giggling. I softly punch the side of her arm and she quickly returns the assault only harder. At precisely the same time we both lunge towards each other and end up wrestling around on the ground. We fight for top position for a few minutes before I grow exhausted and accept defeat. Hailey plops on my chest triumphantly and leans down close to my face.

"Just kidding." I frown in confusion as her gleeful smile only grows larger. "I like the name Dorn." She says, smirking. I laugh loudly and press my head deeper into the ground.

"Fine you win. Can you please _get off _now?" I ask jokingly. Hailey smiles again before beginning to speak.

"Please say that again."

"um…..get off!"

"no the other part."

"Fine. You _win." _

_ "_I usually do." This time its Hailey who kisses me, gently as always. We stay longer this time, not breaking apart for at least five minutes. Just enjoying the moment and being together. Just like every time, when she pulls away it leaves me wanting more but I don't initiate another. I'll admit it though, I desperately want to.

_**Ok um hi again, sorry for another note I just forgot to mention, I'm going to visit my grandparents and I won't be back until like the 12**__**th**__**….awkward. Sorry guys! But you should definitely leave a lot of reviews (hint hint wink wink shove shove)**_


	37. Dangerous

_**SURPRISE! I'm back 2 days early! My parents just decided to come home early (my grandparents only live 4 hours away so we just drove)Anyways new chapter yayyy! I wrote this by hand while I was at my grandparents' house and typed it when I got home! I hope you like it! Thanks for the reviews, and to my new readers, welcome! To answer a question, I just skipped district 9 because I didn't get tributes and I decided just to kill them off, I let one live pretty far into the games so I could start Haden and Whitley's Relation/Friendship! So yeah, enjoy, and review away! WARNING! There is another bad word in this chapter….**_

_**Samantha Sten **_

The amount of energy it takes to pick myself off the ground is almost enough to make me black out again. My eyesight is fuzzy and I sway under each puff of wind. Somehow, my normally tangly tresses fall almost elegantly around my shoulders. It takes a lot of determination, but I lift my hand and manage to run my thin fingers through my smooth hair. I don't know for sure but I think it's about 4 in the morning and the surprise will probably take place at about 8 since that seems to be about the time the sun rises around here. I suddenly notice that the arena is completely silent. No twigs snap and even the birds are quiet. It's eerily quiet but the absence of noise gives me time to think. Each of my dry breaths seems louder than a train horn in the silent forest. Even though my eyes are watering from the wind, they still feel incredibly dry. I close my eyelids and allow myself to sit in the silence for a few moments longer. Without noises to distract me, my mind wanders to thoughts of Blake. My heart catches in my throat as his image surfaces to the front of my brain. It takes every last bit of remaining strength I have left to keep myself from bursting into tears. It's hard to explain how someone you've only known for a short amount of time can make such a huge impact on your life.

There are no words to describe how I feel right now but its ok; I don't have to explain myself to anyone anymore. I open my eyes slowly and reality starts to sink in. Even if I make it out of the arena things would never be the same again. In some ways I still feel like the 5 year old version of myself that believed in Santa Claus and Miracles and her dreams and the color pink. Yet in many ways, I feel like the pessimistic helpless version of myself. I don't know which one I am anymore.

My hand creeps towards the 2 knifes I have left. One is long bladed and has a green handle. The other is the infamous orange handled knife that is almost completely useless to me. As if to prove myself right, I turn the orange handled knife over in my hand and lazily throw it towards the base of a nearby tree aiming for a large knot. Sure enough, the knife sails right past its target and instead nails a quite dangerous pile of leaves. My eyes close shut again as I realize exactly which version of myself I am.

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

I shake and shiver uncontrollably from the chill of the arena. The energy I waste trying to keep myself from shaking only makes me colder. I feel Dorn slip his muscular arm around my waist as though he senses how comfortable I am. I let myself lean back into him and absorb some of his body heat. Just as I get comfortable, his arm slides back and his hand laces through mine. I'm about to ask what he's doing when he crouches to the ground and motions for me to do the same. I lower myself next to him and Dorn grabs a sharp looking stick.

"We need a plan." He explains as he begins to draw a pattern in the dry ground. I watch as he draws each part of the arena layer by layer until a drawing of the entire thing sits in front of us. "We can assume this "surprise" will take place at the center at the cornucopia." he says while placing a star on the cornucopia. "The other tributes will probably hiding inside the entrances of the maze so they can see what's going on." I nod my head as he continues, "We should hide on opposite sides of the arena so maybe we can ambush the last tribute to make it to the surprise." Dorn cocks his head curiously to the side as though he were asking my thoughts about the plan. I shrug nonchalantly as I reply.

"Sounds good to me." Hopefully we'll be able to take out one other tribute so we can have a better chance of making it home. It's still weird to me though, thinking about killing people. A shudder runs through me and I promise myself if I have to kill someone, I'll make it quick. Dorn stands up and runs a foot over the marked ground to disguise our trail. He rubs his hands on his dirty jeans and looks back at me.

Something in his brown eyes somehow still makes me heart flutter when he looks at me. Some days I wake up and ask myself what I'm doing. Am I really letting myself fall in love in the middle of the hunger games? Dorn takes a step towards me. And then another. I can feel his face coming closer to mine and for the first time, I hesitate before returning the motion. I close my eyes. _Is this right?_ It's hard not to second guess yourself when you don't know what you're doing. I'd never even been_ kissed _before I met Dorn and sometimes I wonder whether things are moving too fast. But then again, it's difficult not to fall hard and fast when I feel like we're so goddamn perfect together and every second could be our last. I don't hesitate a second longer and stand on my tip toes to reach his lips. I feel the heat rush away from my blushing face quickly as my mouth presses just right against Dorn's in a familiar way. My heart beat starts to race as I realize something is different about this time. Something is more desperate about this kiss, like it will be the last. Just to prove myself wrong, I pull away and look at Dorn who looks nervous himself. Our eyes meet briefly before I kiss him again. I am suddenly aware that my jacket is unzipped half way and a cool breeze is blowing on my collar bone. I don't move to zip it up though, it makes me feel a little dangerous and I like it.

_**Haden Saen **_

I know we can't stop, but I'm completely exhausted. We've been walking for a good 2 hours now and I'm starting to get tired. Whitley and I are on our way to the center of the arena so we can arrive hopefully before anyone else. It's around 5 in the morning I think so we still have a good 2-3 hours to go before the surprise.

Whitley and I walk silently next to each other without saying a word for a another half an hour before something startles me. I jump about a foot in the air when I realize something is moving behind us. I freeze and out of the corner of my eye see Whitley do the same. I turn my head slowly until I'm facing backwards and can see what's behind us. I find myself face to ….er head with the faceless.

_**One last thing. Someone asked me who I think would play the characters of Dorn and Hailey if this was a movie I guess so here they are. **_

_**Dorn: He's supposed to have kind of dirty blond hair but Max irons matches my image in almost every other way. **_

_**Hailey: This one's kind of complicated. So the person who "created" Hailey actually told me she should look like Samantha Burton, but for some reason, I always kind of imagined her as a brunette skyler Samuels ( like in her IMBD picture)…and with brown eyes…ok I'm kind of an awful person for imagining her different… **_

_**So yeah, you can let me know if there are any other characters you want to see how I imagined. **_


	38. Don't Look Back

_**Hey guys, did the celebrity thing for the requested people. Not much else besides that. As always, please review! **_

_**Hailey Gracefield: **_I thought of someone else I imagine her as**, Emmy Green**!

_**Ruby Jenkins: **_Although I like the idea of Ariana Grande or Emma Stone, in my mind Ruby also had more serious looking face. In my mind she was most like **Karen Gillan**, but honestly, I think that there's no one quite like Ruby.

_**Samantha Sten: **_**Diane Agron **but with her old hair length and it being brown. (but a light brown, not a chocolate brown)

_**Blake Daley: **_Um he's supposed to have blonde hair…but **Drew Roy **

_**Whitley Hedge: **_** Nina Dobrev **all the way

_**Haden Saen: **_ok it's another one of those "supposed to have this" moments. He should have longish brown hair but….I just think this actor's fits best how I imagined. **Nick Hoult **but ONLY ONLY ONLY ONLY in that one picture where he's wearing the leather jacket and the plaid shirt underneath. If you can't find that picture then just imagine him as someone else because he's only Haden in THAT picture.

_**Meg Saiden: **_** Samantha Cope **

_**Piston Steele: **_Like a tanner **Michael Tervino **

_**Dorn Till **_

"Your hair…is in my face." I mumble warmly through a curtain of Hailey's brown hair. She pulls away from me to face me with a smile still on her face.

"Oh? I honestly just think you're jealous." She says sarcastically while running a hand through her wavy hair. I roll my eyes at her and slip my hand into hers. Each step we take through the maze sends a wave of unwanted fear through my body. Each step takes me a little bit closer from being separated from Hailey. Best case scenario it will only be for a few minutes and worst….I don't even want to think about it. I can feel her grip tightening with each passing minute signaling fear, an emotion she rarely displays. I can tell that the sun is on the verge of rising which also sends a ripple of uncertainty through me.

All too soon we come to the entrance of the maze and I find myself looking into the center. I turn to face her and the gravity of our situation comes crashing. I watch her body tense as she bites her lip and wraps an awkward arm around her stomach. The air feels suddenly heavy and I can't bring myself to meet her eyes. I'm standing silently with my eyes focused on the ground when she begins to speak.

"Do you ever worry that the capitol will ever get mad at us for…you know…" The reply comes quickly to my mouth but I suppress it as a sensation of uneasiness washes over me. Would they care? It's not like we had a Hunger Games wedding for god's sake…we just…to be honest I don't even know what we are. I'd say dating but that somehow doesn't sound right for a relationship that started in the Hunger Games.

"You know what?" I say, finally certain of something.

"What?" She replies, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.

"I know don't know and I don't give a _Damn._" I don't even give her a second to react before pressing my mouth to hers for what seems like the millionth time. My eyes seal closed and as I run my hand through her hair. As my hands move slowly up and down her hair, her hands move to both sides of my face as if she's making sure I was still there. I don't want to stop. I don't want to leave. I don't want to be apart from her. But I must. I pull away slowly, feeling forlorn and anxious. _"I love you."_ The barely audible whisper passes through her lips softly unlike any words I've ever heard her utter. I press my lips to the space between her eyebrows and breathe in her scent slowly. As I remove my mouth from her face I slip my hand into hers and squeeze it one last time before turning away. I don't look back as I walk quickly to the other side the arena. _I can't._

_**Samantha Sten **_

I first notice the smell of the smoke. The toxic scent startles me from my sleep and sends me to my feet in less than a second. The bright glare of the blazing fire surrounding me is almost enough to blind me as I stumble backwards in panic. _Great. _I wasn't really planning on the surprise actually being mandatory so this really puts a damper on my day. I stumble slowly in the direction of the maze exit for safety from the hot blaze. I guess this is how they're making sure we all finish each other off at the cornucopia. I'm almost at the stone walls when a searing pain shoots through my left calf. I let out an agonized shriek and look down to see my own skin blackening and peeling away in front of my eyes.

Tears well up but I don't let them spill over. Instead I make a dive towards the maze and just barely make it in before the wall of fire over takes the place I was just standing. I watch from the safety of the maze as the hot flames dance and shiver in front of me. My burn stings like nothing I have ever felt before but I try my best to ignore it. I lean against the wall and look up at the gray sky while trying to focus on my breathing. Each breath I take at this point feels like a victory to me. I decide that if I'm already in the maze I might as well go see what surprise is in store for me. I limp slowly around the first corner and then continue on until I reach the entrance

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

This is it. My last chance at fame, fortune, and maybe even life. My old reasons for volunteering for the Hunger Games now seem plastic and somewhat hard to comprehend but I still remember that day like it was yesterday. Cara French. I'll probably never forget that name. I've never met her and I have no idea what her story is, all I know is that I saved her even though I didn't know it at the time. I flip my shorter hair with a quick flip of my head and start to actually pay attention to where I'm walking. No matter how far I walk through the winding maze, each hallway seems similar to the previous one. I can't have been walking for more than 20 minutes but it feels like hours to me. Every time I feel like stopping to rest, the ache of my fresh bruises and cuts reminds me of everything I have already overcome. I notice a familiar glow on a nearby wall and am overwhelmed with excitement. Sure enough, when I round the next turn, the center of the arena awaits me. I poke my head out and glance around quickly before realizing that I am alone. My heart flutters with excitement as the warm glow of the sun begins to spread up the rest of the maze walls.

I bite my lip for a few moments, half expecting something to rise out of the ground or suddenly appear… no such luck. I knit my eyebrows, unsettled, and lean against one of the nearby walls. As if on cue, a high pitched scream invades my ears coming from somewhere inside the maze. I whip my head back towards the inside but nothing moves. I strain my ears listening for someone or something to approach and remove my dagger from my waistband. I stand braced for attack for a few more moments before apprehensively lowering my weapon. The second my arm hits my side, another loud noise sounds from an entrance across from mine. I train my eyes on the opening and wait for my opponent to emerge from the maze. Sure enough, seconds later, two people, one after the other, come barreling out of the maze.

At first I think they're fighting but then I realize its Haden and Whitley. I wait for them to stop running, but they don't. It's at this point that I notice another figure emerging from the maze. I think it's a tribute at first, but within seconds I realize that it's actually the faceless. I tense my body and wait for the invisible wall to stop the creature but nothing happens. I watch in horror as the monster sprints straight through the once present barrier. My heart sinks.

_This is our surprise. _


	39. I Love You

_**OK this is it. The conclusion to the 125**__**th**__** hunger games. The games may be over but we're not done. Stay tuned for more. **_

_**Whitley Hedge**_

I almost stop in my tracks and stare when I realize that after Haden, I, and the faceless have left the maze entrance, a wall has risen and blocked us from re-entering the maze. The pounding thuds of the creature's footsteps behind us only causes me to run even faster. My heart throbs and each breath become shallower than the last. I am vaguely aware that my long black hair is flying in my face but I don't have time to concentrate on that now. Each step brings me closer and closer to the other side of the maze and a dead end. I cast a brief glance towards Haden who seems to be suffering from the same dilemma as me. His eyebrows are furrowed in both frustration and fear as we approach the wall. Both of us our pumping our arms as quickly as we can as we fly across the field. Sweat pours down my forehead as I sprint frantically towards the maze entrance. 50 feet. 40 feet. 30 feet. _Crap, what now? _

_My decision is made for me. _

Before I am even 20 feet away, another faceless appears at the mouth of the maze. I can't turn around, and I can't keep going. Haden and I both screech to a stop at the pursuing faceless mimics our movements. I cross behind Haden and press my back to his so we are standing together. I peer upwards at the faceless and my face contorts into a grimace. The hideous monster has a hard, shell like material where its face should be and tentacles made of a steel material. Both the creatures have stopped and are now glaring down at Haden and I with what I would guess to be anger. My heartbeat quickens by the second as I brace myself for whatever happens next. Suddenly, both creatures raise their sharp tentacles and bring them towards the two of us with a striking force. I dive to my left side and cover my head on the ground, luckily Haden did the same thing as me. We watch as the monster's arms collide midair and stab each other instead of us. Both monsters receive unsightly gashes but no blood or other fluid comes out. Instead of retreating like I thought they would, both of the facelesses turn towards Haden and I and take a step forward. Haden who is somehow already standing drags me to my feet and gets me running again. I can feel my muscles tense, thinking they were done working after my quick break. A cramp shoots through my leg causing me to howl in pain, but I can't stop. I grit my teeth and suppress another scream as we run back towards the entrance we came from. I can barely stop myself from latching onto Haden and having him drag me across the field, I'm so exhausted. I'm barely even able to take a breath now and the corners of my vision start to turn black and I feel myself losing consciences. 10 feet from the wall I collapse, unable to continue, but still awake. I can feel Haden trying to drag me farther but I know I'm heavy and that we won't make it far.

"_Leave me." _I whisper quietly so only he can hear. Something flashes across his face, but it is not hope nor excitement. It is hopelessness. A single tear falls from his eyes but he leaves it on his cheek and stands up. I watch as the stands up and spreads his arms, shielding me from the monsters. Realization about what he is doing for me hits me so hard I almost cringe. I don't even get the chance to call out and tell him to stop before I see the steel tentacle pierce through his stomach.

The monster tosses Haden's body to the side as if it were nothing more than a candy wrapper as the cannon fires. Terror and Grief and Anger flood through me all so suddenly, it is overwhelming. I shield my face from the blow as the creature raises is arm for the second time. The goodbye lingers on my lips for a few moments. Then a few minutes more. I uncover my eyes and see what's going on. I stare in disbelief at the fallen facelesses in front of me. I remove my arm from my face and look around to see what's going on. Behind the lifeless bodies of the facelesses stands Ruby Jenkins, dagger raised. I feel for a knife I managed to stow in my back pocket but I don't have the time to pull it out. I stare at her, unbelieving, and watch as she takes a step towards me. By the second step, I've scrambled to my feet and I've found myself standing face to face with the ruthless killer.

_**Ruby Jenkins **_

The girl looks like a deer in headlights, surprised and wounded, but at the same time, angry. I cast a quick glance towards Haden's limp body. When my eyes return to Whitley's, I can see the pain she feels reflecting in them. The old me wouldn't have stopped, she would've killed the girl on the spot. But I'm not the old me. I hesitate. Every muscle in my body screams for me to kill her, and to do it fast. But the voice in the back of my head whispers for me to let someone else kill her. I feel my inner conflict surfacing to my face as my eyebrows knit and I bite the inside of my cheek. One thing puzzles me. She doesn't try to run or escape me. Maybe she knows I will catch her, maybe she wants to die. This decision chews on my insides and wastes precious time. I raise and lower my weapon a few times before Whitley says something to me.

"Just do it. I know that if I run, I'll get a knife to the back and honestly, I want you to look me right in the eyes when you do it. I want you to feel this Ruby, and I want you to hurt like you've hurt everyone else." I narrow my eyes at her and purse my lips.

"Fine." I raise the dagger high above my head and aim for her heart, my decision made. I catch her eyes as I bring it down. Cold, haunting, and defiant.

I've just barely gotten the knife in when something from behind slams me to the ground.

_**Hailey Gracefield **_

"Get OFF!" I scream frantically at the brutal red headed girl. I seem to have caught her off guard just as much as I caught myself. I don't know why I felt like I had to help Whitley, I don't even know her. All I know was that I was just overwhelmed with the desire to help her. I yank Ruby's red hair as hard as I can, tearing a few pieces loose in the process. She screams loudly and claws at my hands. She manages to sink a sharp fingernail into one of my fingertips which immediately draws blood.

It's my turn to scream as Ruby whips onto her side, sending me flying. I land face-first in the dusty dirt, swallowing an entire mouthful of dirt in the process. I stand up quickly and turn to face Ruby. Any sympathy or kindness she may have gained is now absent. She lunges wildly at me, aiming for my face, but I easily side step her attack. Ruby keeps in balance without missing a beat and now stands across from me. Whitley, who is not yet dead, lays with her eyes still open, lips parted. I was too late and now I have an angry tribute coming for me.

We've come to a stale mate. Both of us are circling around each other in a perfect circle, stare unmoving.

"So." I say, my eyes narrowing.

"So." I don't know what to do, if I turn away, she'll throw the knife at me. If I attack her, she'll attack right back. So we stand facing each other waiting for the other to make a move. Dorn must still be hidden away inside the maze entrance, otherwise he'd be here by now. I don't dare call to him though, I don't want to alert Ruby. Ruby's eyes burn with a desire that I've never seen before. They dance with desperation and anger at the same time. "Look," she says, "why don't I just…kill you and we'll call it a day mkay?" I roll my eyes at her at raise my fists up to show her that I'm not afraid to fight.

"Do you really think that will work? I mean, you already tried and here I am." I say coldly, referring to the still sensitive gash on my neck. Ruby's forehead creases with frustration as we continue to circle each other.

"You just got _lucky." _ She hisses at me in an equally icy tone.

"Oh _really._ Or maybe you're just not as great as you think you are."

I barely have time to react before she comes at me with her knife. Her dagger finds a spot above my right eye which causes hot blood to trickle into my eye, blocking my vision. I blindly swing a punch at the redhead which connects above her left temple. I scream again, hoping Dorn will hear me this time, it's unlikely though. His hiding spot is a good football field distance away. Ruby and I both jump at each other at the same time and end up rolling around on the ground.

We wrestle this way for a few minutes before Ruby's weight presses me helplessly on the ground. I scream again, hoping Dorn will hear. At my shriek, Ruby looks around wildly to see if anyone approaches but when she figures out this is not the case, she returns her attention to me.

"Who's not as great as they think they are _now?"_ Ruby whisper-yells at me with a cruel grin upon her face. Her dagger moves to the corner of my mouth where she begins to press down. I don't open my mouth because I know if I do, she'll cut my tongue or worse. So I grit my teeth as I feel the stream of blood that starts to pour from the cut across my face. I try my hardest to turn my face to the side but Ruby catches on and twists it back to face her. With my destiny literally in her hands, she leans down close to my face and whispers something in my ear.

"Better say your goodbye's _princess _because this time, I _won't _miss."

_**Samantha Sten **_

"**DORN!"** The scream tears through the arena like a siren as I rocket towards both of the girls. I. am. So. Close. I can clearly see now the blood pouring from the wound on Hailey's face. I can't even imagine the desperation she must feel right now. All I know is that I'm going to do my best to make sure Ruby Jenkins does not win the Hunger Games. As I come to about 20 feet away from the girls, Ruby finally notices me and her eyes widen in surprise. Just before my body slams into hers, Ruby brings the dagger down in Hailey's stomach.

Both Hailey and I scream at the same time as I knock Ruby off the girl and shove her to the ground. Somehow Ruby manages to punch my cheek before I can pull my good knife from my bag. She scrambles upwards and sprints away from me so fast I almost miss it. I don't have time to help Hailey, I HAVE to kill Ruby. She helped kill Blake and I'll make sure she gets what she deserves. I fumble awkwardly through my pockets for my good knife for what seems like years before my hand closes around a hilt. I pull the knife from my pocket with an exhilaration that quickly transforms into anger. I accidentally grabbed the orange handled knife that has given me so much trouble throughout the games. I don't have time now to get the other knife because Ruby is already about 150 feet away and if she gets any farther, there's no way I'll get her.

I raise the knife as steadily as I can and when Ruby makes the turn for the cornucopia, I throw it. I watch as the knife sails through the crisp morning air in almost slow motion towards Ruby.

_And then I watch it hit her in the chest, right where her heart should be. _

My jaw practically hits the ground as Ruby collapses in a heap near the mouth of the cornucopia. I look around and see Dorn Till hurtling towards Hailey who seems to still be breathing. In this moment I realize two things.

Hailey and Dorn deserve to win.

In order for this to happen, I must die.

I look around one last time to acknowledge everything that happened here. It's a full blown miracle that I got Ruby, she has only seconds left at the most. I look one last time at Hailey. She looks like she's 14, but I honestly don't know anymore. With this, I look for a place a camera might be and face it directly. I speak loudly and clearly telling my sister to stop watching. Then, I quickly pull my black handled dagger from my pocket, and push it into my chest.

_**Dorn Till **_

Have you ever had one of those dreams where you are trying as hard as you can to run, but you move in slow motion? Try having it in real life.

I sprint as quickly as humanly possible towards Hailey who has managed to roll her head to the side so I can see her eyes. She smiles as I drop to my knees after finally having reached her. I clumsily shove my hand into her grasp and press my lips to her forehead. When I pull away, I glance at Samantha whose cannon already fired and Ruby who must still be alive. As much as I want to run to Ruby and finish her off, I know that Hailey will die before I can get back and I want to be here for her in her last moments. Hailey's chest moves faintly up and down and I know that she's trying her best to hang on for me.

No matter how hard I try I can't stop the tears from spilling down my face and onto my shirt. Blood has already soaked through Hailey's black t-shirt somehow making it even darker. Her breathing slows even more so I press my ear to her chest like she used to do when we slept. So she could hear me breathe. Hailey tries to speak but I can tell it hurts so I tell her to be quiet and just not talk. Despite my plea, she opens her mouth anyways and tries again.

"You know, I love that you are so proud of that pitchfork. And I love that you can see a turtle when I see a finely pruned shrub," she says with a wink, "I love that you let me insult you. I love that complain about being tan when I'm over here trying not to get fried. I love that you have a mild obsession with snap peas but most of all, I love you."

"Say it again." I say, tears streaming openly down my face.

"I love you." Her nose crinkling as she smiles, but not out of confusion.

"I love you too."

With this her eyes close and her cannon fires.

_**Just in case there is any confusion, winners are Dorn Till and Ruby Jenkins.**_


	40. Safe

_**Sorry for the short chapter guys, there will still be more. I'll start a new syot soon so keep on the lookout! You should leave a review…please?**_

_**Dorn Till **_

Ceilla Cohn's voice booms over the arena announcing that Ruby and I have won the games. For some reason, I feel like it hasn't really hit me that Hailey died. The trace of a smile still hints on her lips. She looks peaceful, like she's merely taking a nap, but I know she's not. With tears still falling freely down my face, I lean down one last time kiss her. Her normally warm lips now feel cold and unfamiliar. When I pull away her eyes don't flutter open like they usually do, and they never will again. I Reach down to the ugly blade and pull it swiftly from her stomach and cast it aside. I turn away to look at Ruby who still lays at the cornucopia, clutching the blade in her heart. When I see her, I can't look away. I am overcome with rage at this girl who killed Hailey so ruthlessly. I slowly stand to my feet and make my way towards her. At first it's a slow saunter but then I realize it's only a matter of seconds before the hover crafts sweeps us up so I begin to sprint. I throw all of my energy into reaching her and I don't even know what I'll do but I know that I have to get her. Her eyes follow me lifelessly as a hurtle towards her faster than I've ever run before.

_Just a little farther. _I think to myself.

I make it to a footstep away from her, hand outstretched, ready to strike, when we are both sucked in by the hovercraft. The strange vehicle is metallic and cold with the scent of rubbing alcohol lingering in the air. I spin around angrily looking for Ruby, but when I see her, I know I'm too late. She's separated from me by a crystal wall that looks to be several inches thick. I am overcome with rage and let out a loud, piercing scream and begin to bang on the glass. Ruby doesn't even look up at me.

"LOOK AT ME YOU COWARD. LOOK AT ME. LOOK AT ME LIKE YOU LOOKED RIGHT AT HER WHEN YOU KILLED HER. **LOOK AT ME." **I pound frantically on the glass hoping that the next blow will shatter the barrier. She acts like she can't hear me but I know she can. With each bang on the glass she flinches away from where I stand and further into the corner.

"I SAID LOOK AT ME!" The commotion I'm causing draws the medical personnel's attention and before a minute passes I'm surrounded by a group of at least 20 of them all brandishing filled syringes at me. When I turn back to Ruby, she too has a few doctors around her, all beginning to treat her wounds. She is looking back at me now, eyes wide, almost _scared. _She looks sick, like she's just had a pot of soup that didn't agree with her. I pound again on the glass, still screaming.

The last thing I remember before the syringe enters my neck and I black out, is Ruby mouthing three words.

_I'm so sorry. _

When I wake up I'm in a cool room that stinks of metal and bleach wrapped in stiff white sheets and a flimsy light blanket. Directly above me a fluorescent white light shines brightly into my eyes. I turn turning my head from side to side only to see a variety of important looking machines on either side of me. With my senses becoming less foggy by the second I can also see that the walls of this mysterious place are stark white similar to the tiles. Everything looks strangely clean and fresh, something I'm no longer used to thanks to the hunger games.

When I reach up to rub my eyes I become aware of the heartbeat monitor attached to my index finger. I unclasp it and inspect the rest of my body for protruding medical instruments. Nothing seems particularly out of place besides a needle stuck in my arm which I also remove. The needle slides out with an unpleasant stinging sensation which causes me to wince. With all my restraints successfully removed I carefully swing my legs around the right side of my uncomfortable bed and touch my feet to the freezing floor. As I begin to stand up I suddenly become aware of the horrendous paper gown I'm wearing.

"Seriously? I mumble to myself as I inspect my new outfit. Not only does my entire rear end hang out, it offers no warmth whatsoever from the cool air. I don't even get to take a second step before three nervous looking doctors break through the door.

"What are you doing? You can't do that! Sit back down this instant." I roll my eyes and plop back down on bed and fold my arms in my lap, hoping none of the doctors got a glimpse of my backside. Not even a millisecond passes before they've got me hooked back up to the machines and the needle back in my arm. I grunt as an old nurse shoves me roughly back down onto the stiff bed.

"Now Dorn, you've just won the _Hunger Games. _You're going to be tired. Just sit and rest for a while ok?" My eyes shift up from the floor and meet the cool grey eyes of the doctor that is watching me. They all stand watching me like bloodthirsty vultures ready to strike at any moment. It makes me angry that these people have complete control over me weather I like it or not. I give in and let the other nurses help me raise my legs back onto the hard bed. Satisfied with my obedience, they all file out one by one turning the lights out as they go. Even though I know no one will hurt me here, I still feel vulnerable, I still don't feel safe.


	41. Forgiven

_**OK hi again everyone new chapter! MY NEW SYOT IS UP!You should go over there and submit someone.(COUGH COUGH shadowheart10,hollywollypolly,munamana,Captin Hero, xxbeautiful redemption, tomboy96, and zep 182…. I would miss your reviews terribly…PLEASE?) Just a quick note, I've decided that I'm only going to be showing Dorn's point of view from here on out ( one or two more chapters guys!) because quite frankly, I want Ruby to remain a mystery! Anyways that's all I have to say, author out! **_

_**Dorn Till**_

It's different this time. The last time I was here I was nervous, shaking even. The last time I was here I thought it was my last chance at survival. Now that I stand here, palms dry and heart beat steady I can really admire the glamorous stage. Hundreds of thousands of tiny lights twinkle in their places on the walls that surround me forming pictures and color like I've never seen before. Vivid greens, purples, and blues dance before my eyes to the beat of an unfamiliar song. It's so much different than the environment of the hospital that has been my home for the past few days that it's almost a surprising to me that there is a world beyond the four walls of my bland hospital room.

My eyes shift from the colorful displays to the person standing directly across from me. Ruby Jenkins. She stands the wings across from me awaiting Leporis's say so to appear on stage. She looks different. Her hair is long again, falling just below the halfway point in her back but that isn't why she looks strange to me now. The fire that once blazed in her eyes has died, leaving only the remains of the girl she used to be. I honestly do believe she's changed, that she's no longer the sadistic cruel girl that murdered Hailey in the arena. But that doesn't make it any easier. Everytime I look at Ruby I see her, Hailey I mean. Her brown hair, her striking brown eyes, and her disarming smile. I see what she could've been, what _we _could've been. Even though its only been a few days since I saw her, the minor details are beginning to fade from my mind. I'm already having a hard time remembering the shape of her nose and the exact shade of brown for her hair. But that's not the worst part. We always have pictures. I'm sure I'll be bombarded with them tonight. No. The worst part is you start to forget the sound of their voice. Even video and sound recordings cannot even begin to accurately portray the way she sounded. I try to remember the things she said and play them back in my head with her voice, but it becomes more difficult by the hour and it will only fade further from my memories.

I can feel Ruby's eyes on me, she's watching me. I can't bring myself to meet them though, I just can't.

I'm saved from any more moments of awkwardness when Leporis calls my name loudly over the microphone and gestures for Ruby and I to meet him on stage. I walk to him slowly this time, I'm in no rush. I extend a hand to Leporis but he embraces me in a warm hug instead, the first I've had sinc-

"Welcome, Welcome…WINNNERS OF THE 125TH HUNGER GAMES!" His booming voice echoes over the stadium like a shout in an empty cave. I force a small smile as the applauding crowds also acknowledges Ruby and I's victory. Leporis motions for us to sit as he takes a seat himself. I ease myself gently into leather chair and fold my hands and wait for the night to really begin.

"So…tell us, what does it feel like to be a victor?" He asks warmly to Ruby and I. From the way Ruby looks at me I can tell she doesn't want to answer first so I turn to my right towards Leporis and begin my 'speech'.

"It's just amazing," I gush, "I'm so glad to have the honor of being back here with all of you and all of Panem." I smile warmly but inside I feel ice cold.

"And you Ruby?"

"It's lovely yes, quite an honor." Her response is shaky as if she is unsure of herself. I almost turn around to look at her, but I don't.

"and quickly, before we start the recap, what is the first thing you plan on doing when you get back to your districts?" Another glance and Ruby tells me I'll be answering first yet again.

"Head to the parlor and order a scoop of cookie dough ice cream." I hate cookie dough ice cream, but I don't dare say what I really want to do, its too personal. Too soon.

"Ruby?"

"Visit my friends." She replies tightly as though the response was just as rehearsed as mine. With this the auditorium lights begin to dim and the video begins to play.

I try my best to keep from looking away as the other 22 tributes stories unfold before my eyes. Each death causes my throat to constrict tighter and tighter until I fear I won't be able to breath. I watch with my eyes bugging out as Past Dorn and Past Hailey meet and fall in love. The crowd coo's when we share our first kiss and whispers anxiously when I leave her for the feast. By the time the blade enters her stomach I can't hold back anymore and tears stream freely down my face. I watch myself close her eyelids and kiss her goodbye with watery teardrops distorting my vision.

When the lights come back on, everyone is silent except for me…and Ruby. I turn and watch as sobs rack the once graceful girl's body and she shakes with grief. Her face is red and puffy as she looks up to me and begins to speak.

"I'm..I'm so s-sorry!" She manages to sputter, still crying. "I-I don't know why…I don't know what came ov-"

"Its ok." I surprise as the words pass naturally over my lips without resistance.

"Its not!"

"I know what it's like in there. I know what it's like to need to survive. What matters is that you're sorry. Hailey would forgive you. Hailey would want _me_ to forgive you. Hailey wouldn't want me hating you for doing what you had to. Hailey would understand, so I will try my best to do the same." I extend a steady hand the crying girl and grip her hand tight in mine as she meets it.

Hailey would want this. I know she would.

A couple songs from things I left out:

Faceless chasing Haden and Whitley: Muttations from the hunger games score.

Hailey's death: goodbye: avril levigne.


	42. Never Let Go

_**Hey guys. To answer a question, I decided to skip the victory tour because there wasn't anything I wanted to add there. This is the last chapter. I'll miss you guys and I truly hope that you'll venture over to my new SYOT. (HEY MUNAMANA, XXBEAUTIFUL REDEMPTIONXX, TOMBOY96…)its titled danger:85**__**th**__** hunger games. Anyways this is it…. Xoxo Megyn **_

_**Dorn Till **_

"Will a black and white one be ok?" The clumsy capitol storekeeper sent to help me pick a cat couldn't possibly be more clueless.

"No," I remind him impatiently, "it has to be an _orange _tabby." He nods quickly and races off to the back room once again. "Don't forget the white paws!" I shout, just in case he forgot which I wouldn't find suprising.

It's been 6 months since I won the 125th Hunger Games. Ruby and I were on victory tour until a week ago visiting the different districts. It was better than I expected. Easier. I got to meet Hailey's mom and sister. They both thanked me and showered me with praise and love. They showed me their house and Hailey's room, they even gave me several photographs of her, whatever they could spare. It was kind of weird seeing them. Her sister Aria looks like her, the same brown eyes and the same effortlessly wavy hair.

The storekeeper returns from the back carrying a furry lump that I can't quite make exact details out of. He gently places the kitten on the glass counter in front of me and inhales deeply as I inspect the cat.

She has grey eyes the color of the sky before a storm, perfect orange fur, and dainty white paws. "She's perfect." The store keeper lets out his breath and begins to help me checkout. I watch as he loads the 6 week old animal into a padded cage for transport to my house in the victor's village.

"Name?" he asks, raising his eyebrows. "For the tag."

"oh," I say, "the name…Its Oatmeal." The store keeper raises the other eyebrow.

"Oatmeal?"

"Yes."

I let Oatmeal out as soon as I arrive at my house and let her explore her new home. The funny thing is that she doesn't immediately run to the underneath of a sofa or bed like I expect her to. Instead she uses her sharp claws to crawl her way up my pants leg and into my arms. As I sit there and stroke my new friend a saying I've heard around before pops into my head.

There are things that we don't want to happen that we have to accept and people we don't want to lose that we have to let go.

But that saying isn't true for me.

I'll never let her go.


	43. Light in the Darkness

_**Hey everyone I'm back! So many people wanted to see something from Ruby's point of view so here it is! Those following my Danger story, I have some reapings written and I'll type those as soon as I get a chance! So yeah, later alligators, enjoy! (I hope…)**_

_**Ruby Jenkins**_

Each intake of breath at this point is a struggle. I'm propped up at a highly unnatural angle to prevent my throat from becoming blocked. How lovely. I glance around my dimly lit hospital room as much as I can without moving my head. Oh how the simplest of things can evolve into a difficult task as we age. For a reason unknown to me, a faint smile pulls at my wrinkled lips as I fold my hands quietly in my lap. The blue glow of the alarm clock mounted above the window across from my bed reads exactly 1:00 AM.

My last moments are approaching, I can feel it in almost the same way you can feel an approaching storm. It appears that I will exit the world in a similar manner as my husband of over 70 years. He died at 2:00 in the morning a little less than a week ago. The exact number of days it has been has slipped from my mind, becoming a worthless detail. I suppose for Nick and I it really was till death do us part.

The minutes pass by painfully slow and I consider counting the number of texture spots on the ceiling but even I know that I will begin to lose my place somewhere around 5 spots. I only wait now for one last goodbye with my son. If it weren't for that I would have allowed myself to be consumed by the shroud of death hours earlier. My discomfort increases so I shut my eyes to block out the electric glow of the room. I haven't been laying this way for a moment even 15 seconds when a clumsy doorslam alerts me to my son's arrival.

"Mom? OH GOD! NURSE! DOCTOR? SOMEONE COME QUI-" I slide my eye lids open lazily to reveal my overly dramatic 27 year old son.

"Dorn Sam Jenkins would you _please _shut the hell up? You know the nurses say any loud noises could send me over the edge." I command in a smart tone with a quivering voice.

My melodramatic son is now clutching his chest dramatically and leaning onto my dresser for support. I roll my eyes and produce a tired smile and outstretch my arms inviting a hug. The warm embrace lasts only a few seconds before Dorn pulls away.

"I'm so Sorry I'm late! I was walking out the door and then Kalia got the email about our baby's gender!" He says referring to his 3 month pregnant wife of 3 years.

"Well?" I say anxiously, curious to hear the answer.

"It's a girl!" he says with a cheek to cheek grin smeared across his face.

"Name?" I ask, not really expecting them to have already picked one.

"Hailey."

The sound of her name sends a dull ache of regret through my body. It has been 72 years since I'd heard that name spoken in any place but my memories. Her 15 year old face surfaces in my mind at just the bare mention of her name. She never got the chance to grow up.

"What a lovely name." I say softly, trying to mask the pain in my voice. I think about my time in the hunger games often. One of the most thought provoking questions for me is why there is winner. I've thought of every possible answer I can imagine before finally coming to a conclusion. Maybe the captiol is not as generous as everyone thinks. The reason for a winner is because the victors never really live again. Not a single night passes without nightmares and the mention of a name or weapon can feel like a dagger in your heart.

I feel Dorn's hand tighten on mine as I shut my eyes again

I never explained my time in the Hunger Games to him or Nick, and I never will. It's a shame that my son doesn't know he's named after one of the most incredible men I know. I open my eyes just enough to see that it is now 1:25 AM. I give Dorn's hand one quick squeeze as the buzzing continues around the room.

For the first time, I see light even with my eyes closed.


End file.
